


Until I Die / Chasing Solitude

by outtahere



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon-Typical Violence, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Underage Prostitution, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Psychological Trauma, Rape Recovery, Rape/Non-con Elements, Slow Build, Slow Built Uchiha Itachi/Uchiha Shisui, Slow Burn, Universe Alteration, You Have Been Warned, no beta we die like men
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:49:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 8
Words: 34,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24260869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/outtahere/pseuds/outtahere
Summary: A/N: This is a very dark work, especially in the beginning. The tags have it all, so you have been warned.Some aspects/moments/dialogues may be parallel to Surfacage's work, as they are the one who inspired me to commit this monstrosity of a fanfiction.Uchiha Itachi, the prodigy, the absolute powerhouse of the Uchiha clan, the eldest son, the heir, was tired. All this responsibility and prestige were agonising. He wondered if there would ever be a moment when he could just be himself. Not the heir, not the prodigy, not the ANBU captain, not even the older brother - just himself: Itachi.Some people from the distant lines of the Uchiha could be “adopted” into the main house if they showed enough potential. Shisui was one of these people. It was a great prestige to be so closely associated with the clan Head. Shisui didn't choose this, and his early acquiring of the Mangekyo took away his option of withdrawal.This is a story about dealing with a lot of trauma and some other fucked up shit that none of these characters deserve but I love being mean to them so, yeah. Enjoy the road to and through and out of hell.
Relationships: Haruno Sakura/Uchiha Sasuke, Hyuuga Hinata/Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Itachi/Uchiha Shisui
Comments: 43
Kudos: 48





	1. I Won't Let Him Go Alone

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, this is my first fanfic ever. I'm sorry for what I do to the characters. Prepare for a long and bumpy ride.
> 
> If anyone is wondering, Itachi is 11, Shisui is 15, and Sasuke is 6.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Reposted

It was a dark morning. Clouds covered the sky, subduing the silver light of sunrise. The streets were still quiet, no civilians had businesses open at this ungodly hour. If one listened closely, they could hear the subtle shuffling of various city-dwelling critters.

A light breeze carried away the night’s chill and brought the smell of dust and trees. A boy no older than 11 walked along the main street leading to the Hokage’s tower. His eyes went to a well-known cat, peacefully enjoying his freedom before another genin team would try and catch him.

The cat napped on a tall fence, belly up and tail swooning down. Itachi noticed the cat’s ears move at the sound of his feet. He walked by evenly, not wanting to spook him – he deserved some peace.

Only the Fourth could’ve asked him to report at 4AM. It was an odd timing even for an ANBU mission. It could either be something that couldn’t wait or something that called for utmost discretion. Itachi suspected the latter: no summons or clones have come to hasten his pace. He wouldn’t be late, though. He never was.

The sun was still touching the horizon when the young boy pushed open the grand door. It creaked softly; the hinges worn out by years of constant use. Itachi noted that in is head as a security concern. He made his way up the stairs, all the way up to the top floor. The large spiral staircase gave a notion of grandeur, a rich chandelier hung in the middle, and a red carpet was adorning the floor. All of the decorations were supposed to show strength and prestige, and they served their purpose so well that Itachi found the whole thing slightly overwhelming.

 _Maybe I should’ve taken the window_ , he smiled at the thought.

The Hokage awaited him in his office. A large wooden desk was littered with files, scrolls, and books. The clock on the wall showed 3:59.

The Hokage himself looked like he didn’t go home that night. Pale, with messy hair and shadows under his unusually bleak eyes, he sat slumped at his desk. The moment Itachi noticed that it was more than an all-nighter was when Minato’s lip quivered before uttering a silent ‘hello’.

“Reporting for duty, Hokage-sama,” Itachi greeted with a soft bow.

“I’ve found something…” Minato started; eyes fixed on the file before him. “I’ll need you to infiltrate and investigate.”

“What is it, sir?”

“A human-trafficking group. They target mostly boys between the ages of 9 and 11. The scouts found them in Tako town, it’s right before our border with Rivers country. Their intentions are unknown however, I have my suspicions. They could be training an army, or…” Here he paused to rub his sleep deprived eyes. “They could be using these boys for a more… hospitable profit.”

Itachi was still too young to understand the implication. Of course, he was the youngest ANBU in history, a prodigy, and the heir to the Uchiha crown, but nonetheless he was still a child.

Shisui, on the other hand, was neither too young nor a child. His disgust was clearly visible as he shunshined into the Hokage’s office. Chakra radiated off of him like a halo as he stepped in front of Itachi.

“You’re not sending him there!”

“Abandoning your post during patrol is frowned upon.” The Hokage scolded, but the Uchiha wasn’t phased. “All other approaches have failed, Shisui.” Minato retorted, eyes never meeting the new visitor. There was no surprise on his face at the intrusion, either. It made him want to cringe at his own foolishness, though – expecting Shisui not to leave his rooftop post and barge in once he sensed Itachi nearing the office.

“Like hell will I let my future Clan Head go somewhere like that.”

“Itachi is a skilled shinobi, ANBU nonetheless. He is the only one suitable for infiltration.” The Hokage argued with the steaming teen. He watched as the older boy covered Itachi with his body while the younger boy was too lost in thought to notice the protective behaviour.

“He is still a child! Most ninja his age haven’t even graduated from the Academy yet!”

“He is an adult by law. All shinobi who graduate the Academy and are above the age of 10 are considered adults by Konoha’s law,” Minato said sternly.

“It’s dangerous! He, he could be…”

“And so could be all the other captured boys! And, as you said, most of them wouldn’t have graduated yet, or they may be civilian. Who do you think stands a chance? Itachi, or those poor boys?”

“Why can’t I just use kotoamatsukami? Get them to stop?”

“Because we need to know why they are doing it, so it could be prevented in the future,” Minato explained, his expression full of pain.

“He could be raped!”

A ringing silence followed. The Hokage’s eyes were fixed on Itachi, who only now seemed to connect the awful dots.

“I’ll go.” Itachi stated.

The night seemed quieter than usual. People of the compound were asleep, only a few lights illuminated the windows. Even animals seemed to abandon their nightly endeavours to give Itachi the necessary silence. Pondering was something that Itachi’s been always good at.

He stood on the porch of the main house and leaned slightly on the rail. It was located at the far end of the district, the front overlooking other buildings, whereas the back faced a beautiful garden.

The garden was upkept by the community, but ultimately, it was his mother, Mikoto, who ruled over the vast greenery. The boy smiled at the thought of her plucking fresh tomatoes for his little brother. He missed his careless days playing on the grass and chasing butterflies. He missed sneaking out of Mikoto’s sight to watch his older cousins train clan techniques over the nearby lake. These were the days long gone, before the words ‘heir’ and ‘prodigy’ were on his daily agenda. Back when he was just Itachi.

A swoosh signalled Shisui’s visit. The older boy leaned on the rail beside him. It would most likely be one of these silent nights they shared before missions. They started right after Itachi made jounin. Shisui would shunshin to his porch and they would sit or stand quietly. Itachi used to wonder why Shisui would do that, but eventually stopped asking when it turned out there wouldn’t be a better answer than “should I leave?”. Today was different. Shisui shuffled uncomfortably, not from the cold but the thoughts running through his head.

“You’re not going alone.” Shisui finally said. Itachi only now moved his head to look at the teen. They caught each other’s glances.

“Huh?”

“I won’t let you go there alone.” The older Uchiha straightened his back. He managed to beat some sense into the Hokage. Maybe sending a team would be risky, and Konoha did need as many shinobi on patrols as it could get, but sending an heir alone on such a mission was a bad political move.

“How will this not spoil the mission?” Itachi asked, eyes calculating.

“I won’t exactly be participating. I’ll take a team, we’ll just be there in case you need backup, gather information from outside.” Shisui explained with his voice heavy.

“Thank you,” Itachi whispered.

They all moved out early morning. Itachi borrowed some clothes from his civilian clansmen, so he wouldn’t be discovered immediately. He made sure the clothes were comfortable enough to fight, though. His hair was much shorter now, only reaching his jaw. Cutting it with dull scissors into a jagged bob was the last step of his preparation.

Shisui donned his usual navy high-collared shirt and tanto holster, his Konoha headband laid proudly on his forehead. He decided to skip the flak jacket though, any enemy they came across didn’t immediately have to know his rank.

Itachi’s team looked almost unrecognizable without their ANBU uniforms, and with their mixture of ninja and civilian clothing they could all pass for random travellers.

They skipped through trees slower than usual – Itachi’s civilian sandals were not made for channelling chakra and jumping. They would still reach Tako town the next day.

It was already late when they decided to make camp. The trees rustled on the wind; a rabbit passed them slowly, probably somewhat used to shinobi setting up camps in the middle of the woods. The air smelled of earth, and the ground was in some places covered by soft moss. Itachi started gathering firewood while Shisui put up the genjutsu barriers. The rest of the team busied themselves with dinner and keeping watch. Always silent and waiting for orders.

They worked together quietly and efficiently, relying on chakra signatures rather than sounds to manoeuvre around each other. If someone looked at them, they would think that they either were very experienced shinobi or that they knew each other better than themselves.

It was both in their case. They have trained together, fought together, and apart from that, they have all spent a significant part of their lives on countless missions. They decided to just sleep by the fire and in the trees.

Itachi ignited the gathered branches, and soon their modest campsite was illuminated by the warm glow. Both the Uchihas’ eyes flickered red in the light. Shisui was unusually tense when they ate their military rations, but Itachi didn’t pay attention to him glaring at his short hair. He was consumed by watching their two comrades lurk in the trees.

They were professional as ever, but something about Hog’s movements made Itachi tense. The other ANBU’s eyes were drilling holes into him every now and then, the eerie forest only intensifying the sensation. But there were more pressing matters at hand – he had to get kidnapped soon and that posed its own set of complications.

After dinner, they looked over the mission scroll once again, memorising the descriptions and skillsets of their opponents. They wouldn’t be too hard to defeat: they were known to use water- and earth-based techniques and had no affiliation to any village. Their uniforms consisted of dark masks and large beige and red cloaks. Quite hard to miss, if Itachi was to judge. The apparent organisation seemed to be quite fearless and established, no one else would let themselves have such identifying qualities.

The next morning, they considered their options: it would be wisest to keep to the road and travel by foot, but Tako town was less than two hours away if they ran. The latter meant however, that they could come across the rogue ninja they were after in an inopportune setting. Being seen travelling at ninja speed would also blow Itachi’s cover.

So, they walked at a leisurely pace which, though Itachi would never admit, was a blessing to his feet. The group had concealed their chakra into something expected of a usual child and middle-ranked genin to chuunin.

The sun was already high up on the sky when they noticed that the trees were further apart and the undergrowth was busier. It was visible that the landscape was transforming more and more into the great plains of The Land of Rivers. From a distance away they could hear the soft hum of a river. Tako town was near.

“Someone’s following.” Shisui broke the comfortable silence.

“I know. If it’s who we’re looking for, we’ll have to lose the fight.” Itachi replied, turning his head to look at his comrades. The three foreign chakras were circling them, not bothering to hide. Their cover stood; they were passing as non-threatening tourists. It wasn’t too long before one of the ninjas jumped in front of them. Shisui moved protectively in front of Itachi.

“What do you want with us?” Shisui asked, studying his opponent. The description matched. He didn’t exactly need to know his answer.

“Just to greet you before you enter Tako!” The nin laughed.

“Oh, so you’re a Tako-nin? I didn’t know they had established a ninja population!” Shisui played dumb, hoping the rest would follow.

“They did, our leader thought that every town should have at least a few ninjas of its own.” The nin replied. His comrades were inching closer. If either Shisui or Itachi turned around, they could spot them in the trees.

“That’s a good point!” Shisui agreed. He turned to face Itachi. “Kid, see, the route is safe.”

“It’s always better to be cautious.” Itachi replied.

“Well, Tako-nin, are there any good shinobi pubs we could rest at before we go further?”

“You should find some along the main road,” the foreign nin replied. His eyes were fixed on Itachi, though. He was sizing him up and down.

“Oh, I’d die for some good beer,” Squirrel added, her blonde ponytail moving along with her head.

“These rations are gonna be the death of me, I hope they have good food!” Hog chirped in, patting his belly.

“We should get going,” Itachi bowed to the foreign nin, “thank you for welcoming us.”

“There’s a nice tavern by the main street, just past the market.” The nin smiled brightly at them, like a trip advisor. Itachi wanted to scoff.

“Sounds good, we can spend the night there,” Shisui exclaimed as the rest nodded enthusiastically.

The road was calm if not for the three foreign shinobi still following them at a distance. They no longer walked by wild trees and bushes, but rather through a cultivated forest. Shisui could see that the plants were edible or medicinal, or even plainly decorative along the dirt path. It was a practice as old as time – using already growing trees and plants but tending to them as if they were put there by men. It was very environmentally friendly and could sustain a good number of people. The town was not focused on food export, then. Shisui noted in his head.

The gate was plain, made of wood, and was rather a landmark than a security feature. He spotted a few civilian guards and some small shooting towers further into the town. The buildings were tidy, but not rich. Each one had a small garden full of vegetables and flowers. Perhaps finding out what did the town do to make money would help them figure out the rest. Some civilians walked the roads, some were engaged in conversations, some were scurrying somewhere with packages. The people looked generally happy, but he could see some gloomy faces among women.

“Hi, sorry to bother you,” Shisui asked a passer-by. “Is there any place here to rent a room?”

The man looked them all up and down before answering.

“Just down the street by the market.”

Shisui continued on his way after thanking the man. He gestured to his comrades and they stopped by a shop to get some clothes. Something that didn’t scream “Konoha” from a mile away was probably a good idea.

After getting something that wasn’t too obvious but still functional, and not _hideous_ (Shisui had to agree with Squirrel on that) they changed in the back of a dark alley.

Shisui’s headband was no longer on his forehead, but safely tucked into his bag. Shisui wondered if Itachi and the rest felt as naked without it. Another thing that suddenly started bothering him was his unruly, curly hair that fell in his face.

Finding the inn and renting a place to sleep was easy enough. The room he got was small but comfortable. It had everything a room had to have and not a notch more. The bathroom was tiny but clean. The rest of his team had their rooms down the corridor, with Itachi taking the one in the corner. It was the easiest one to sneak into.

* * *

It went exactly as planned. Under the cover of the night two ninja crept into Itachi’s room. The young boy overrode his instincts and remained on the bed, awaiting their move. He felt a prick in his arm before a burning sensation slivered around his wrists and ankles. Some whispers followed but he couldn’t make out any words.

 _Seal?_ Itachi thought, opening his eyes.

He feigned horror as he reached for the kunai under his pillow and aimed it weakly at one of the intruders. He couldn’t direct chakra into his feet and jump away from the retaliating blow.

The fist connected with his stomach, sending him to the ground. Itachi noticed black spots dancing in the corners of his vision and realized that sealed chakra wasn’t his only problem.

His mind became hazy and Itachi soon lost track of where exactly they were taking him except a) to their hideout, b) into the forest. His body was almost limp as he hanged from one of the nins’ shoulder. He tried to keep his eyes open.

The leaves were too dense to see the moon’s position, and he couldn’t exactly use his chakra to learn more about his surroundings. Itachi watched the terrain, hoping to remember the path without his sharingan. The ground descended into a valley, the earth moist and loamy. Even the air smelled of moisture and undergrowth. What worried him was that there were no birds or animals. He spotted barely a few bugs. A tumble of a nearby stream echoed around them, the only other sound among their hassle. They reached an opening in the valley’s wall.

“Where are we?” Itachi asked, dazed.

“Someone’s awake.” The first ninja laughed, leading the way through a narrow corridor. There was no further reply to his question.

They walked wordlessly for a few minutes, only the echo of their footsteps and breathing bothering the eerie silence. Itachi could feel the other two men inch closer to him, blocking his escape path. Good thing Itachi did not plan on escaping, yet. He was set down with a thump.

“Walk if you’re awake.” The ninja said, pushing his still quite limp body forward.

A large door stood in their way. It was plain wood and steel, no ornaments, no inscriptions. Just a door fitted into a narrow stone corridor.

The second nin put his hand to the door. A soft purple light blinked a few times before the door fell open revealing a wider and well-lit corridor. The boy was forcibly pushed through, and the door immediately closed behind them. The way out was cut off.

The ninja led him further into the hideout through the stone corridor. The echo of their steps carried in all directions. There was no feigning politeness anymore. They shoved him through the turns and pushed him down some stairs, oftentimes hissing at him to stop struggling and keep moving.

“That Konoha guy was like, real stupid!” the first one laughed.

“Yeah, taking such a cutie with him and not guarding him… not one of the brightest.” The second one added.

“You won’t see your parents again,” the first one said, his condescending eyes set on Itachi.

Itachi sniffled at that.

A few turns later Itachi was thrown into a cell. It was dimly lit, dirty, and the drug they gave him overcame his senses again, he was out cold before his body hit the ground.

The ANBU rose to his feet what felt like an eternity later. His joints were sore, and his lower lip pulsated with a dull pain. He looked around his new accommodations. There was a small toilet and a basinet, a bedroll in the corner and a single lightbulb hanging from the ceiling. There were boys in the cells around him but they didn’t meet his eye.

“What,” Itachi started, “what will they do to me?” he asked, going back into his role. It wasn’t hard – it _was_ his first mission of this sort and he _was_ scared.

“Shh, or they’ll hear you!” One of them shushed. He extended his hand for Itachi to come nearer to the gate. “You have to be obedient; they’ll beat you if you try to fight.” The boy’s voice lowered to a whisper.

“But why are we here?” Itachi pressed further. The other boy sat and seemed to only care about looking out the bars.

“I don’t know. They come and go, sometimes they take someone, sometimes they bring someone.”

“Does someone ever get back?”

“They do, but they’re never the same.” The boy answered truthfully, his hand moving to point at a boy in another cell. “He can’t be trusted.”

Itachi crooked his neck at an awkward angle and his gaze landed on the other boy. His back was turned to them, and he was almost motionless. The only indication that he was alive was the slight movement of his chest.

“Will they let us out?”

“Only to eat or bathe,” Itachi’s informant said. “What’s your name by the way? I’m Ryuuchi.”

“Tachi.” Making a connection with the boy seemed like a good idea, he seemed observant enough to give him the basics.

“How long did I sleep?” Itachi asked in a hushed voice.

“About a day, you slept past today’s dinner.”

The guards didn’t show up until the next morning, or sometime around that basing on Itachi’s internal clock. They rung their clubs on the bars filling the air with a loud, unpleasant sound. It took every ounce of Itachi’s self-control not to lash out on these men. But the mission came first. He had to learn why was this happening at all and what was these people’s goal. He pretended to be just groggy from lack of sleep.

“I thought it was just a bad dream,” he mumbled to the other boy as they moved to stand in front of the bars. Head hung low and hands folded in front. Itachi tried to mimic the boy’s stance.

“It’s just breakfast.”

Moments later the cells were opened. A tall ninja in a red and beige cloak let them out into the corridor. They all walked slowly along the corridor in two neat rows until it expanded into a hall.

It was much better lit than the cells, and Itachi noticed some windows right under the ceiling. Streaks of daylight fell to the walls like lasers, but none of them actually reached the floor. It must be early morning, Itachi calculated quickly. On the other side of the hall was another door, similar to those he just entered through. He gave the room another once-over and his eyes caught a heavily guarded staircase leading up. It was– it was a way out.

“Don’t even think about it.” Ryuuchi warned, following his gaze. Itachi left it at that.

He followed the boy to a wooden table where they sat and waited for food. The foreign ninja stood by the walls watching them all like ravens watch their prey.

* * *

Shisui started losing his mind the moment Itachi was out of his sight. He consciously knew that he was a very resourceful and skilled ninja. That did not however, stop him from worrying sick. But mission was mission. It was enough that the Hokage let him even leave the village with Itachi. Now he had to search the town and find out if the organisation was involved with their politics. He had to learn what the citizens knew and thought about it, and whether or not were they okay with it.

The team entered his room with their usual blank expressions. He sighed at that, being ANBU really took its toll on a person: he could already notice the subtle changes in Itachi.

With a short description of their current objectives and a few pointers from Shisui about actually fitting in, they decided they would cover more ground dispersed around the town; eye set out for any suspicious behaviours. The decided to meet at sun-down at their inn.

Shisui decided to lay down and think for a while before he got back on his task. He didn’t know for how long Itachi would deem necessary to stay with these bandits. All he could do was stalk around the town, get something to eat and maybe find out if the citizens knew what was going on beyond their gates. It was also time to report back to Konoha that he’s reached Tako and that Itachi got in.

He summoned his crow to carry the message without moving out of bed.

As expected, he didn’t find out anything in the main part of town. The town had a rather unconventional layout: it consisted of three circles and he noticed that a fourth was being added, the poles that would be road lines were already set up. The innermost circle consisted of the main buildings like the town hall, bank, granary, an inn, and a market. In the second one there were businesses, a park, and some small (on Konoha’s scale) mansions. The outermost circle seemed uninteresting, mostly houses and manufactures. It was mostly calm, some children played in the streets, people went about their daily lives, nothing seemed out of order. That seemed suspicious enough, but the sun was already setting on the horizon and he wasn’t careless enough to snoop around without any backup. He went to meet his team at the inn.

The easiest way to get to the inn was to take one of the bigger roads that stretched outwards from the inner circle.

It really wouldn’t do to be found lurking in the non-tourist areas.

That was until he decided to take the longer way to the inn through the middle circle.

Everything went to hell when Shisui came across a building with closed windows and loud music coming out. The teen gave in to his curiosity and took to the cover of a dark corner to watch the entrance.

A lot of men, mostly well-dressed, came in and out the front door. The staff on the other hand went around the building, which meant they had a separate entrance. That could only mean that it was an expensive place, where else wouldn’t the staff enter along with the customers? Certainly not a place he could afford to visit.

 _But it’s something_ , he sighed with relief. Shisui shunshined back towards the centre - he had something specific to report back with. Back in his room, Shisui met up with the team.

“It’s real quiet here,” Squirrel stated, her hip resting on the dresser in Shisui’s room.

“I still don’t get why you got the lead here,” Hog eyed the Uchiha, “You’re not even ANBU.”

“But Itachi is the heir to my clan, and its Hokage’s orders,” Shisui furrowed his brows. “I’ve got something, though.”

“We’ve only been here for a day.” Squirrel hopped onto the dresser which creaked under her weight.

“I guess it’s some sort of an expensive hotel, but people spent only an hour or so inside. I dunno,” the Uchiha moved towards the window, “but it may be connected to the group were looking for.” Shisui reached to get his curls out of his eyes.

“We should take a look,” Hog agreed, but both Shisui and Squirrel noticed a mocking grin playing at the corners of the other shinobi’s mouth. “Put it under watch if you’re right.”

The ‘meeting’ ended with that, and the two ANBU headed to their rooms for the night. Shisui couldn’t be bothered with changing into pyjamas so he threw himself on the bed and fell into the shallow, dreamless sleep so typical for shinobi.

Morning came too quickly, and the rays of sunshine that came through the naked window woke the teen up. He rose from the bed groggily and almost automatically went to the bathroom to splash some cold water on his face. Sleeping in foreign beds was never something Shisui liked to do. He could never rest properly, and the type of sleep drilled into any genin (dubbed ‘shinobi sleep’ not without reason) wasn’t the best either. It was only meant to keep them going.

Breakfast supplied by the inn looked more like a dinner: roasted meat, rice and a plate of baked vegetables, but Shisui’s appetite knew no bounds after even a day of military rations. He devoured the small portion, completely not sufficient for a ninja’s calorie intake, in record time. It earned him a few stares but he dismissed them with an exclaimed, over exaggerated praise to the cook.

“Did you like it, sir?” a maid asked.

“Never had anything better!” Shisui agreed with a smile. “I’ve seen some cultivated forests on my way here yesterday, is this all locally grown?”

“Yes, yes, it is! You’re the first guest to notice our way of farming.”

Shisui had to bite his tongue not to say that reading one’s surroundings and learning about places from observation was a shinobi thing. Instead he smiled politely and asked for a refill on his tea.

The maid came back with a kettle and another set of questions.

“Is this way of farming common where you’re from?”

“Not really, but my family has always had an orchard. We make sure that it is diverse and friendly to the native plant system in my area.” Shisui explained without batting an eye. It wasn’t technically a lie, too. “While getting here I noticed your forest looked similar, it’s on a much bigger scale here, though.”

Shisui smiled brightly and ignored the weird looks his comrades sent him. He kicked Squirrel’s ankle under the table.

“Oh, that’s amazing!” the maid chirped, “I thought our art was going extinct!”

“I thought so too, but here we are,” Shisui agreed, his body shifting towards the maid. She looked his age. She had light brown hair falling on her shoulders and an apron tied around her waist. There was a sadness in her eyes.

“Our forests used to be a tourist attraction, you know.”

“Are they not anymore?” Squirrel joined in.

“There are rogue ninja lurking there. They usually don’t bother citizens but it’s too dangerous to take tourists there.” The maid explained. “You’re lucky if you didn’t come across them.”

Shisui nodded with a hum.

“What’s your name?” he asked suddenly, a plan forming in his head.

“Ryuuka,” the maid replied.

“I’m Shi. What do you say, could we take a walk after you get off?”

The ridiculous stares from his comrades were worth all of Konoha’s treasures.


	2. It Wasn't Supposed To Be Like This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Reposted
> 
> This was a hell to write. A VERY HUGE TRIGGER WARNING FOR THIS CHAPTER.  
> Please enjoy (Only the Shisui parts. Itachi's are absolutely horrible and I feel like a bad person for putting them there).
> 
> Shisui and Itachi both uncover the purpose behind the kidnappings, though apart and differently.

After breakfast the boys were ushered back to their cells. Itachi estimated at least thirty boys were being held in this place. He also now knew of two possible ways to get out.

Dinner was the same. Itachi had actually started to miss his military rations, the food seemed fresh enough, but the way it was prepared was just foul.

Each meal-time they were herded into the hall, given food under the watchful eyes of the red-and-beige cloaked ninja, they had to eat everything they were served (and Itachi did, despite his gag reflex at even the thought of eating this ‘food’), and then taken back to the cells. It went on the same for three days.

He had to find out what was behind the other door in the hall. Another tunnel? More cells? There was no other way of finding out except actually going through.

During these three days Itachi memorized the guards’ patrol routes and timing, he also learned that Ryuuchi has been here for around a month. The boy amazed him to some extent. Despite being held captive for such a long time he remained positive and adapted to his new reality. He wasn’t broken and unlike some other boys, his will to fight was still there. Itachi decided to trust him.

They were sitting in the corner and playing rock-paper-scissors across the bars. Itachi studied Ryuuchi’s face before deciding it was the right moment. He cast a genjutsu around them, making it look and sound as if they were still playing.

“How did you know about all the ninja you mentioned at breakfast?” Itachi started, still feeling the need to probe the ground.

“My sister, Ryuuka, once borrowed a bingo book from a passing ninja. There was a hefty sum for some of them,” Ryuuchi explained.

“I’ll trust you with something: I am a ninja as well, I got here undercover,” Itachi whispered.

“Are you here to break us out?” Ryuuchi dismissed Itachi’s statement, and the hope in his voice almost made Itachi cast away the initial mission.

“Not yet, I need to find out why was everyone taken.”

“I don’t know that. The other boy, Mako - I think that’s his name - may know. He doesn’t speak to me, though. And he’s a snitch!” Ryuuchi said.

“Huh?”

“Once I took a piece of bread from the hall, and he ratted me out to the guards.”

“Hn.”

Since then Itachi started watching the inmates’ behaviours, and another day passed before he figured it out. They varied, and he thought that it may depend of the length of the boy’s ‘stay’ in this facility. By now he had no doubts that it _was_ some sort of facility. Itachi noticed that there were four types among the boys.

Type 1 – those who obeyed, but weren’t submissive.

Type 2 – those who were violent and lashed out.

These two types were attributed to the boys who have spent a short time in this facility. The type at this point depended solely on a boy’s personality. It was visible that the guards preferred type 1 over 2. However, if anyone lashed out or tried attacking, they didn’t pull their punches. They did it with a smile.

Type 3 were the ones who cried all the time, rocked back and forth in their seats after having been here long enough to lose the will to fight. Itachi suspected that was the desired behaviour.

Type 4 – these boys were submissive and seemed all but willing to please the guards.

The 4th type was the most intriguing. These were the boys who had already been taken through the doors at the other side of the hall. Itachi wondered what could’ve changed these boys so much. It was almost a 180-degree turn. Maybe some kind of a drug?

By the week’s end Itachi worked out what behaviours got a boy taken through the door. He started mimicking them, making sure to put up a believable act. Each night he chatted with Ryuuchi, making sure he was feeling better.

“That’s a weak one,” one of the guards told his friend when they passed Itachi’s cell. “Usually they take at least two weeks.”

“You think he’s ready?”

“Give him a few more days.”

Itachi pretended not to hear them. The guards’ conversation only confirmed his theory on inmate types. Those who fell into the third category were those taken through the door.

“Ryuuchi,” Itachi stated, “for how long were the other boys taken away?”

“A few days,” Ryuuchi looked up from his dust-drawing. “Why do you wanna know?”

“I need to get through the other door in the hall, find out what is there.”

“You’re crazy.”

Itachi was forcibly taken from his cell two nights later. Eyes followed him from beyond the bars, some with fear and some with yet unexplained envy. The ANBU feigned torpor as he was led first into the hall and then through the door.

What he saw there wasn’t at all what he expected. It was lush. The floor was wooden and the walls were painted purple. Instead of cells there were rooms that looked like actual bedrooms. The chandeliers covered everything with warm light. There was a small door at the other end of the corridor. It looked like a supply closet.

He was brought before a woman. She was evidently a ninja; it was visible in how she carried herself if the crossed Suna headband wasn’t enough. She looked at Itachi, hopefully only seeing a child scared lifeless. She brought a hand up to his head and released his hair from its tie. It fell onto his shoulders, dents visible from a week of being bound. It probably added to his pathetic look. She took a strand between her fingers.

“You didn’t wash him before showing me?” The irritation in her voice was clear.

“I told you we forgot something!” one of the guards yelled at the other. Itachi’s eyes jumped between the ninja and the woman. He didn’t like where this was going. She eyed him up and down again, her gaze narrowing around his face.

“Are you an Uchiha?” she demanded, grabbing Itachi’s chin in her palm.

Her eyes looked into his own, daring him to lie.

“What’s an U-chi-ha?” Itachi lied seamlessly.

“No matter,” the woman said pushing his face away. “Wash him before he goes through.”

“Yes, boss.”

Itachi felt his body clench as he realized the ‘ _could be raped_ ’ was turning into ‘ _would be raped’_. His shoulders hunched and he couldn’t bring himself to close his mouth. A creeping feeling started in his stomach. The time seemed to slow down.

“And you’ll be a good little boy, right?” She turned to Itachi who now could only bring himself to nod. His knees were threatening to buckle under his weight.

 _Get yourself together!_ he thought.

“Such a pretty little thing,” she mused, walking away. The last of his consciousness made him cover his ANBU tattoo with a simple henge. He begged the gods to let it slip past the woman.

This place was entirely different from what he expected, and Itachi was terrified. His mind constantly threatened to go blank, and his clenched throat refused to let him take a calming breath.

In a stupor, he was led into a bathroom. He was stripped naked, shoved under lukewarm water and handed a bar of soap. Thankfully, the spray helped sober him up. He needed to think. And fast. Shisui was right, he shouldn’t have accepted, he shouldn’t have come here alone, this was above his expectations. What was he supposed to do now?

Itachi pretended to be delighted. He seemed as if he was taking his sweet time basking in the water and soap. His mind raced.

He turned around, reaching his hands to his back in feigned delight. _No escape routes._

 _Can’t blow the cover. Need to find out more. Have to take these children out of here_. His thoughts were barely coherent, but at least they were back.

He could blow his cover, incapacitate the ninja, take their weapons, fight his way out. But that wouldn’t help the mission or the boys held here. Ninja have to risk their lives to protect others. It’s any ninja’s duty to take the blows directed at the people under their protection. Itachi was no exception. He contemplated casting a genjutsu, but decided against it. He’d have to use a henge for any and all marks left on his body, and that would be easily discovered.

 _I’ll have to let them do it_ , Itachi thought. His mind went through all the manuals and instructions for ninja who would find themselves in such situations.

Don’t struggle, avoid injury that may influence chances of escape. If feigning pleasure may deter the offender, do so. Try to relax. Relaxing minimizes physical pain and injuries to affected areas. Preserve chakra for escaping. Shut off all emotions.

All these instructions were for post-combat captivity, and mostly directed at kunoichi. Itachi was, however, grateful he’s read them. They were for when fighting has proven unsuccessful, the last resort. Itachi was consciously letting this happen. But maybe the male body could use some of the proposed ways.

He shivered when the water was cut off. His time was up.

“Get out of there, princess!” Came through the door. Itachi grabbed the supplied towel and dried himself. Pulling the towel as tight around himself as it would go, the ANBU stepped outside.

The guards led him through the corridor – he could see the doors leading to the hall. He turned around in feigned fear, only to see the woman he saw earlier disappearing behind a door at the other end of the corridor, apparently it wasn’t a supply closet. Another door to explore.

They put him in one of the bedrooms he saw earlier. It had a nice bed, a carpet, and some other furniture. Itachi studied the room closer, using a sliver of chakra to look for traps or other mechanisms. He found none.

He heard footsteps before the door creaked. A tall, well-built man entered the room.

“You look like a girl with all that hair,” the man noted. He was dressed in high-end civilian clothes, which Itachi envied, mostly due to the fact that he only had a towel. The man’s hand played with his still damp, shoulder-length hair.

“Good-, good day, sir,” Itachi tried with a soft bow. A smack came to his head.

“Deeper.”

Itachi bent in half. Keeping his reflexes at bay was hard. But the mission came first.

Everything went on too fast after that.

* * *

Shisui was getting restless. Itachi had been gone for a week now, and he didn’t try to contact him.

He didn’t just pass time during that week, though. He learned what he could about the building. It wasn’t much – just that it was a weird hotel or possibly a bordello that catered to rich men. It was mostly Hog who insisted that they should keep observing that building and discover possible guard patterns. Squirrel decided that seducing other women in the tavern would get her somewhere, so for the last three days she kept a close eye on rich female patrons.

Shisui had also found out that Ryuuka’s brother was taken by the red-and-beige cloaked ninja around the same time the business in the building started.

Generally, Ryuuka proved to be a pretty good source of information on the village. She had tried finding her brother on her own but failed. She was happy to share all that she’s found, though. Her sources led her to the abandoned barn west from the town, but the trail died there.

Shisui took a break at the eight day’s noon. Nothing stopped him from engaging in a little fling, if anything it could even prove beneficial to the mission. She had a pleasant face, nice long hair and was conveniently shorter than him. Her humour was similar to his, and she could think logically – everything he thought he would look for in a partner. Shisui could tell she started liking him, but whether he was just a new visitor and a means to lighten her despair, or a genuine crush, that he couldn’t know.

It got him thinking, had he ever had a crush? There were pretty girls in the academy, but he was too young to exactly care. Then on his genin team, and as a chuunin he couldn’t remember trying to get close to anybody.

There was Itachi. They would spend all their free time together, training and bickering, pinning each other to the ground or trees. But this was a brotherly bond. Something natural, something that two prodigies from the same clan would form.

Apparently Ryuuka was his first crush, and the thought bugged Shisui for the rest of the day. Squirrel had even mentioned the day before that he looked lovestruck when they met at the inn for dinner.

Shisui pulled himself out of these thoughts. Shivers went down his spine, but not from the chill. It was time to call for backup from Konoha. He needed someone more experienced to help him figure out what the hell hid behind the facade of that weird hotel. He summoned one of his crows.

Kakashi would be his choice, the man was a pervert and a skilled ninja. Moreover, having an additional sharingan could never hurt. He admired the older ANBU. There weren’t many shinobi as experienced, as dangerous, or as loyal as Kakashi. And, Kakashi had always been a mentor to both him and Itachi. Mostly because he was the only one except the Hokage to best them in a battle.

 _Ah, that pervert_ , Shisui thought with an oddly fond smile, _he could take this village down with his nose still in Icha-Icha Paradise_.

Shisui snickered, _maybe this hotel was a bordello_? That would’ve made sense, but it wasn’t a welcome thought. That would mean Itachi was in another kind of danger. Another set of shivers went through the boy’s spine. Shisui threw the thought out of his head. The hotel surely was connected and was probably the main base of this organization.

The crow sitting on his outstretched hand was becoming impatient. Its claws dug into his unprotected forearm as the bird waved its wings. Uchiha took out a piece of paper and began coding the message, it wasn’t easy to focus with claws embedded in his skin. The note was then swiftly sealed and tied to the crow’s leg.

Shisui watched it disappear over the forest.

It was getting dark. The boy jumped down into the shadows of an alley and made his way to the back entrance to the hotel. He was silent on his feet and blended into the falling darkness. His eyes caught two red-and-beige cloaked ninja engrossed in a conversation. A little eaves-dropping never hurt anybody, did it.

“Totally, did you hear about the new toy?” One of them said.

“The black-haired one?” the other replied and Shisui’s heart stopped. “I heard he’s real tight!”

“Like he was made for this,” they both laughed. “Wonder when the missus will let us have a go at the little bitch.”

“Mukade said he was special. They’ll probably keep him only for the best clients.”

“Such a shame, I wanted to pull that hair of his.”

Shisui used every ounce of his self-control not to kill these two ninja on the spot. Long black hair was a rather clear indication who the said boy was. He shunshined away fearing what he may hear next.

 _Anyway_ , he rationalised after materialising on the roof of his inn, _I got some information. There’s that Mukade guy, and the ‘missus’ who is behind all of this, and it is a paedophilic bordello. That’s enough to move in once backup arrives._

His feet hung down from the rooftop as he looked up to the stars. His erratic heartbeat did nothing to calm his nerves and his thoughts run wild in his head. Shisui wished he could go back and rip these two ninja’s heads off just to use up the adrenaline.

His crow was back. Shisui looked to the direction it was coming from. It was wrong. With closed eyes he let it land on his outstretched hand and let his chakra melt into the crow’s.

Itachi.

His eyes snapped open. Itachi had sent the crow.

He looked at the bird’s feet but there was no message, and looking with his sharingan didn’t change that. Why would Itachi risk sending a crow without a message?

Unless the crow _was_ the message. He looked towards where the crow came from. It came from south-west, from beyond the scarce wheat fields. He saw them before as he patrolled the town after Itachi was taken.

A second crow came into his view as he paced around the rooftop. This one was coming from Konoha.

Kakashi would arrive first thing in the morning.

* * *

Itachi came to his senses afterwards, feeling numb and torn. He vaguely remembered the man leave, and lying motionless for some time. There was no one else in the room.

Everything below his navel felt as if it were ripped apart. The hands trailing his body were gone, but he could still feel the burning touch. He tried to get up from the tousled bed. Before he could blink, pain shot up from between his legs to the base of his spine. And above all else, he felt dirty.

Wishing he had studied at least _some_ medical jutsu, Itachi directed a bit of his chakra to the main source of his pain. It didn’t help much, but he could awkwardly shuffle out of the bed. The floor swayed slightly under his feet. He moved over to the door and listened. It was silent. Itachi dared to flare his chakra.

There was nobody near, and he found out he was three meters under the surface. There were no chakra barriers in the walls, the floor or the ceiling. If he wanted, he could break out.

He could break out and find Shisui.

Break out and let the older boy take care of the rest.

Break out and curl into himself and just cry.

Break out and let himself crumble.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this. Losing his virginity was supposed to be with someone he loved.

But the mission came first.

With his chakra more or less exposed, he summoned one of Shisui’s crows. Itachi felt it land over him, awaiting a message, but there was no way he could attach one without completely blowing his cover.

He sent it to find Shisui, hoping that would be enough of a message. Give him a direction.

Itachi felt the bird take off right when a chakra signature came into his range. He quickly subdued his and laid down on the bed. The wooden door creaked softly as the man from before entered the room and shivers ran down Itachi’s spine.

The boy got up with a wince of pain and bowed deeply. There was a grunt of pleasure.

“You learn fast,” the man said. “If you behave, I’ll get you a little treat.”

Itachi remained in his position. The man forcibly straightened him and traced his hands along Itachi’s body, as if inspecting the invisible marks he left there a few hours ago. The boy couldn’t help his shivering. These marks would stay with him forever.

“We need to get you ready, there are special guests coming in soon.” Itachi didn’t know if the man spoke to himself or to him so he only bowed his head.

“Sir,” Itachi dared to say.

“Mukade-sama, that’s what you will call me.”

“Mukade-sama,” the boy corrected, “why are you doing this?”

He was thrown onto the bed the moment the words sounded in the air. The man was on top of him, his harsh breath irritating the back of his ear. It was tough to breathe.

“Because,” Mukade started, “its profitable.” The boy could hear the man shuffle out of his pants, one hand still pinning Itachi down. At this very moment Itachi figured out what must be behind the unsuspecting door: a corridor running towards the bordello this organisation was running.

The boy tried to wriggle out of the man’s reach. It was obviously in vain, as he couldn’t use chakra. The man pulled him towards the end of the bed so that Itachi’s feet touched the floor and his face was pressed into the bedding.

Itachi felt the man rip off what little clothes he managed to get into. The boy knew what was about to come next. The man squirted some oil onto his back and rubbed it around roughly, not minding Itachi’s pained wheezes as he pushed his fingers in harshly. Itachi couldn’t stifle the yelp that escaped his throat. All other thoughts escaped Itachi’s mind when Mukade’s penis went in, there was only the ripping pain.

Mukade started moving without even pretending to give him time to adjust. Itachi’s bruised insides yelled for the body to get away, but he just shut his eyes and tried to relax.

Mukade chose a leisurely pace, and Itachi dared to open his eyes a bit. The pain would end, eventually.

In and out. Itachi focused on his breathing.

In and out. He felt the man lift a hand from his hip.

In and out. He heard a lighter flick.

In and out. The smell of a cigar reached his nose.

Itachi coughed. The pain in his bottom made his eyes water.

In and out.

In and out.

In and out. Itachi got used to the man inside him. His entrance was still threatening to rip with every movement, and the bruises inside were swelling and only worsened the whole thing.

In and out. A burning pain spawned on his right shoulder - the man must’ve burned him with the cigar. Itachi yelled out in pain. He would do anything for some ice or healing chakra, his body clenching and shivering all over again.

It and out. Mukade seemed not to even notice Itachi’s squirming.

In and out. The burns kept coming.

The man left right after finishing onto Itachi’s back, his semen further stinging the burns. The boy could only cry. His back burned with what felt like a constant fireball jutsu on and underneath his skin.

About an hour later two guards came in, tossed him into a shower, then dried and dressed him in some thankfully loose garments. He was returned to his cell. The guards snickered something about returning in some time to give him his treat.

Shisui couldn’t sleep that night. He tossed and turned and hit the mattress a few times just to loosen up his tension. Something was horribly wrong, but he knew neither what nor to whom it was happening, even though he had a strong suspicion.

The morning couldn’t have come soon enough.

Shisui darted towards the roof. His eyes already scanning the horizon for Kakashi’s familiar figure. He noticed it not even a minute later, passing the gate. He flared his chakra, there was no use in staying hidden anymore.

“Yo,” Kakashi greeted Shisui in front of the inn. His hair was ruffled from the run and his cheeks were a little flushed which meant the jounin had been conserving chakra on his way to the town.

“Hey, Itachi sent a crow yesterday.”

“News?” Kakashi looked around the perimeter.

“Just the direction it came from.”

“Someone else may have sent it…?” Kakashi was rightfully suspicious. It wasn’t unheard of to use decoys after all, but Shisui would recognize Itachi’s chakra signature from a thousand similar ones even in a chakra-depletion-induced sleep. He would bet his life on the crow being sent by Itachi himself. And he was about to.

“I’m sure it was Itachi.” Shisui let a bit of anger seep into his voice. “And I don’t think I’ve been noticed yet. I’ve been posing as a civilian.”

“Let’s go up, then. Tell me all you know.” Kakashi moved to follow Shisui upstairs but they bumped into Ryuuka in the threshold. She looked at them both with wide eyes. Both Shisui and Kakashi felt their faces drain.

“I’ll keep quiet, just get Ryuuchi out,” she said, then nodded at them and scurried off.

The two men went upstairs to the room. Kakashi gave it a once-over but didn’t comment. Instead, he turned to look expectantly at Shisui.

They both sat on the bed and the younger man fiddled with his fingers – a tick rather uncommon among the Uchiha – while trying to get his words.

“The disappearances, kidnappings…” Shisui started, “…are connected to the bordello I wrote about.”

“You called it a weird-hotel-like-building, if I’m quoting correctly,” Kakashi interrupted.

“Yeah.” Shisui scratched his head. “Anyway, I believe there is a second location where they keep the boys they’ve kidnapped. The one where the crow came from yesterday.”

“How do they get the boys into the town?”

“I thought about putting a henge on them, but Hog’s been observing the place day and night and you know he’d see right through something like that. There must be a tunnel or something. The girl we bumped into, Ryuuka, was really helpful.”

“Do you know anything else?”

Shisui told the older man everything he learned from Ryuuka and supplying it with Squirrel’s findings. The female ANBU turned out to be quite the seductress.

Kakashi kept nodding at his words, his hands wandering to and from his headband-covered eye, as if wondering if he’ll have to use it. After Shisui finished his detailed account of the town Kakashi sent Pakkun to investigate the possible tunnel and the general direction Itachi’s crow came from.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do hope the next chapter will not take two weeks to publish. Thank you for waiting.  
> There are no rape scenes in the next chapter, and we will probably have like two more chapters focusing on this mission before we move on.  
> That doesn't mean reciprocated romance yet, or that Itachi's trauma will be forgotten. I hate when traumatic experiences don't take their tolls on characters or when they are magically healed because they fall in love.  
> Thanks for reading!


	3. He Deserves To Die By It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Reposted
> 
> I said I hope the chapter wouldn't take two weeks.  
> I was wrong. I'm sorry.
> 
> Its time they got everyone out of the place, so expect some violence, trauma, etc.
> 
> No one we like dies, don't worry.
> 
> More notes at the end.
> 
> Enjoy!

They spent the rest of the morning staking out around the bordello. It was a sunless day: a thick veil of clouds covered the sky bathing everything in a silver shadow. The muted light diffused in the surroundings created no stark contrasts or shadows, much to the shinobis’ dismay. Hiding in the shadows was just plain easier.

Shisui decided to sit on one of the nearby roofs with a taller building adjacent to it. It wasn’t the best cover but it would have to do. Kakashi followed suit and soon they both sat with their backs pressed to the wall. Hog had somehow managed to blend into the bushes behind the building and Squirrel got herself a “job” at a maid caffe across the street.

“Is this the usual security?” Kakashi asked while his gaze trailed one of the ninja.

“No. Not the usual clients either,” Shisui noticed.

The clients looked richer and more sophisticated, some even had guards following them. Though other people kept coming in and out the front doors like any other day, the guards were doubled and focused on the, apparently, special clients. There were not only the two men usually circling around the door, but other ninja were visible on the roof, behind windows and in the general perimeter.

“You think they know we’re here?” Shisui asked.

“No, looks like they’re waiting for something.”

It seemed they were preparing for someone’s arrival, and someone important at that. The guest’s arrival would be a beautiful moment to strike. They could take them in for questioning and dissipate the rising tension between Suna and Konoha by stopping the kidnappings.

Another hour or so passed by uneventfully. Their perch on the roof went unnoticed, and they have already memorised the guards’ patterns. There really was nothing else to do for them there but wait. Kakashi remembered something.

“I need to see Tako’s chief of police.”

“Huh?”

“They’re under our orders now. Minato gave me his seal.”

“And you only remembered that now?” Shisui snickered, but it carried no mirth. He rubbed his eyebrows to prevent them from permanently creasing his face. “I won’t wait for you if something happens.”

After that Shisui was left alone on the roof. He scanned his surroundings and caught Squirrel’s pointed gaze. He followed her finger to the building’s entrance.

A woman wearing a crossed Suna headband came through the front door. Her dark long hair bounced with each step, looking like an octopus. She was the only ninja who wore a headband amongst all of this organisation.

Shisui activated his sharingan to better embed her face into his memory.

The woman looked around impatiently, her shoulders squared and head held high. As if on cue a carriage came around the corner, heading towards the woman. Once it stopped a young, well-dressed man got out. He looked like a rich merchant or even a daimyo’s son.

The woman greeted him and motioned for him to enter the building, his own guard following suit.

This looked like their best chance of dismantling the bordello and catching the people financing it, Shisui mused in his head. His eyes turned towards Hog, who was supposed to watch the back of the building. His chakra wasn’t there anymore.

With his eyes ablaze, Shisui scanned the building for familiar chakra signatures. Hog was inside?! The ANBU’s chakra was still and collected, then disappeared completely.

Pakkun and Squirrel apparated beside him.

“I’ve never liked that guy,” Pakkun said, noticing Shisui’s turmoil. Squirrel huffed in disbelieve and grit her teeth, her fists clenched.

“Where’d he go?” She asked.

“No idea, but Kakashi is leading the police to surround the building. Move in in three minutes. I have to go.”

They both nodded and watched Pakkun puff away in a cloud of smoke.

“Get in and evacuate the children, watch out for Hog and any henges.” He spoke towards Squirrel but Shisui’s eyes stayed focused on the building.

Three minutes had passed.

Black flames swallowed the building and everything inside. It burned with the cold fury of the caster, obedient and unforgiving. The fire would not bend under water or water techniques used by some of the red-and-beige cloaked ninja. Only wind could dissipate the flames into an opening, but even that only lasted a few seconds, then it burned with doubled animosity. The odourless smoke did nothing to cover the stench of burning flesh.

Shisui was engulfed by the flames himself, but they were merely a protection – no one would, or could, stop him from tearing this place to the ground. Any souls trapped in the building would deserve the end they met.

Squirrel had managed to lead four boys outside and towards Kakashi. Shisui felt the last of his inhibitions drop.

Windows crumbled, the rich carpets and curtains made a beautiful snack for a fire that could swallow stone. Black flames and black smoke filled the air around them, their moves in sync with Shisui’s heartbeat. Soon the roof gave in and the weight sent the rest of the two-story bordello cascading down to the ground, to Shisui’s contention.

The young shinobi calmed the flames once the building was reduced to rubble. Any screams or whimpers were quickly subdued by the remaining fire swallowing their general location. Once no chakra remained among the stones and shards of wood the black fire flickered out as if they were never there, their only remainder the charred rubble. No other building bared even a lick of fire; the shinobi knew they wouldn’t but checked anyway.

Shisui turned to face the escapees, no emotion visible on his face. He noticed Kakashi and Tako’s police force tackle the remaining people. The boy heard some of their yells, mostly curses and threats like “I am the daimyo!” or “my company will leave Konoha!”. None of that fazed him. Paedophilia was a federal crime punished by incarceration and torture. Nothing they said would or could save them.

As if on cue, Pakkun returned to Kakashi’s side.

“Report.”

“The abandoned storehouse in the outskirts is not abandoned. I also felt chakra signatures underneath. There is a tunnel connecting these two buildings, I don’t think it has any other exits, and there’s another tunnel leading into the forest.” The dog reported with his usually bored face. Maybe it came with being a pug.

“Itachi?” Shisui asked.

“He’s there,” Pakkun confirmed.

Shisui didn’t have to be told twice. He was out of sight in an instant.

 _Beware those, who cross Shunshin no Shisui_ , Kakashi thought.

The older shinobi moved to follow after his comrade once he made sure the local authorities could handle detaining the rest. He slapped some chakra blocking papers onto the few red-and-beige cloaked ninja that didn’t die in Shisui’s Amaterasu. Squirrel nodded at the silver-haired ANBU.

Rooftops creaked under Kakashi’s footsteps. He jumped his way out of the town then took a leap to the ground and sprinted to catch up. Pakkun was at his side, sniffing and reporting that they were running directly above the tunnel.

They met under a lone tree growing near the supposedly abandoned storehouse.

“What now?” Kakashi asked.

“If there is another tunnel, we should block it.” Shisui said and heard Pakkun growl. The dog didn’t like to be doubted. “I’ll go from the front.”

Shisui didn’t wait for a reply. He rushed towards the building, attacking it with a simple Katon fireball. Smoke covered the perimeter giving Kakashi the perfect cover. He ran towards the woods with Pakkun at his side.

Simple may have been an understatement - Kakashi felt the heat wave as he entered the forest.

When the thick canopy of leaves obscured the sky Pakkun moved to lead them further.

Kakashi reached the end of the other tunnel. It was rather well hidden: an unsuspicious gap between the boulders forming a small canyon. The trees still covered the sky, though not as securely as before, and the undergrowth consisted of more bushes and young trees than ferns and moss. He secured the area with a simple genjutsu, curtesy of his sharingan.

Kakashi bit his thumb. “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!”

His nin-dogs appeared in puffs of white smoke.

“We’re gonna be escorting about thirty children back to Tako, please be nice.” He commanded. “We have no idea what state they are in so be prepared to carry some.”

* * *

Red flames of Shisui’s Katon enveloped the building. Apart from screams he heard glass break from the sudden temperature change. Shisui snickered.

The shinobi stopped right in front the main door and waited. He could see the red-and-beige cloaked ninja run out the door. Their eyes searched for the source of the attack, to no avail. The smoke was thick and stung their eyes, but Shisui was immune. This was his smoke and his flames after all, his Mangekyo spun into life once again. These ninja were about to experience the wonders of Kotoamatsukami.

Shisui strolled through the battlefield, his own killing intent flooding the place and adding to the already existing carnage. Blood sprayed around and fell to the ground with soft taps, he reached the door to the storehouse bathed in red.

A single shoe laid on his path along with a scrap of a red-and-beige cloak. Or was it blood-and-beige? The Uchiha let the ninja finish each other without further input.

“Where are the children?” He asked the few men still alive.

Instead of replying and letting Shisui consider sparing them or at least ending them quickly, they decided to attack. Their weapons flew at the shinobi with the anger of a caged animal. They were terrified. Irrational decisions, poorly executed moves, half-mastered techniques - none of which could even touch the Uchiha.

The cold fury that boiled beneath Shisui’s skin was only fuelled his chakra. You see, reader, the thing that distinguishes a shinobi from a ninja is not only their affiliation to a village, it’s the discipline and training that make them into the killing machines they are. Shisui was no different. His shunshin only made the men panic more, the after-images coming and going in an instant. He sent a flurry of kunai towards the men.

All hit their mark.

Shisui kicked down the basement door. The shards went tumbling down the stairs, revealing what looked to be a mess hall. The Uchiha jumped down, searching for one precise chakra signature. It was there.

Ninja came rushing out of each end of the hall, murder intent visible on their faces. They all wore the signature cloaks, and Shisui didn’t care to look for personal features: he came here for one person and nothing else mattered. His body flared with buzzing energy as he charged.

First came the fists, flying at Shisui from all directions they gave the shinobi no time to think before he started dodging.

Apparently, these ninja didn’t take turns at fighting their opponent like in the movies. They also did not pull their punches, Shisui had to admit, when a blow sent him into a wall.

Second came the sound of clashing metal.

It came from down the western corridor, a powerful surge of chakra followed.

Shisui’s body reacted automatically.

Dodge, kick, fireball.

Duck, punch, pivot.

Kick, dodge, swerve and dodge.

The ninja went flying away but more kept coming.

Familiar black flames broke out of the western corridor and Shisui’s heart broke. They weren’t his.

Itachi emerged from the flames dressed in ragged clothes and barefoot. His hair was a tangled mess but it still rose up in the aura of red chakra covering him.

Shisui darted in his direction.

“Itachi,” he spoke quietly amongst the panic. “Itachi, we gotta get the children out.”

“I sent them to wait at the end of that corridor. There’s a sealed door there.” Itachi’s answered. Not once had his eyes met Shisui’s.

“Let’s go, then.”

“No.”

Shisui watched in terrified awe as Itachi moved towards the ninja. He was deadly fast and had no intention of sparing anyone.

The rubble crumbled into dust under the flames of Amaterasu, and Itachi slashed and cut and kicked with reckless abandon. The boy didn’t care when he got hit, just rose and pushed further.

Itachi reached the eastern door.

“We took care of the bordello, Itachi.” Shisui called hoping the younger Uchiha would stop damaging the structural integrity of the building even further. It was bound to collapse on them any minute now.

“Get the other boys, I have someone to kill.”

“We have the woman in custody.”

“I’m not after her."

It dawned on Shisui. He’s overheard the guards talk about a man having his way with Itachi. He let the boy go past the door.

“I’m not going to hurt you!” He called when he reached the boys crowding the tunnel.

“Who are you?” A boy with brown hair asked, stepping up in front of the rest.

“Konoha Jounin Uchiha Shisui,” the shinobi said.

“Is Itachi alright?” The same boy asked.

“I hope so,” Shisui said. “Now I gotta get you all out. Let me through.”

Shisui once again called upon the Mangekyo and summoned Amaterasu. The door turned into dust before them. He let the boys come first.

He followed the boys through the tunnel, towards Kakashi. A sound of an explosion coming from behind made him stop in his tracks.

“Faster!” Shisui hurried the boys. Already a sound of footsteps could be heard in the tunnel.

The boys pushed over each other and stumbled in the dark corridor. Their panicked breaths and yells could be heard from a mile with the echo that carried within the narrow space.

“Go, don’t stop. Another Konoha shinobi is waiting there for you.”

Shisui stopped. There was no way they would reach the end of the tunnel before whoever was chasing them caught up. Now at least he wouldn’t have to mind the kids’ safety as he fought.

His hunch was right, it wasn’t Itachi racing through the corridor.

“Give our boys back!” A man clad in the signature cloaked demanded.

“Uh-huh.”

Shisui went through some hand signs and sucked in a breath. A dragon made of fire flew through the tunnel towards his enemies.

Chakra exhaustion was catching up to Shisui faster than he wanted it to. He’s overused the Mangekyo and could feel the dried blood lacing his cheeks. Using fire techniques didn’t help his smoke-burned lungs either. But hand to hand combat in such a place wasn’t really an option. There was no place to use the shunshin or even pull a roundhouse kick. Not to even mention the use of tantō.

He sent kunai after the dragon hoping the blazing flame would conceal them. He wanted, needed to end this quickly.

Shisui parried water-bullets with a fireball. He ducked under senbon but a chakra string caught his arm. The shinobi didn’t want to waste more energy at trying to yank the string out of the holder’s hand so instead he jumped into close quarters despite the disadvantages.

But Shisui was a skilled shinobi. Three shadow clones appeared behind the men and pushed them towards the Uchiha. The string caught on his arm slipped down without the tension keeping it in place and Shisui delivered a punch to the first guy’s nose. The force sent him stumbling onto his comrade’s readied sword. Oh, such a rookie move.

The other man looked up only to feel a shuriken aimed for his throat hit its mark.

Shisui wiped the blood from his face. He didn’t care to check how much of it was his own. He rushed back towards the mess hall.

What he saw was new. Itachi was usually efficient in his kills. He didn’t spill unnecessary blood or cause suffering. This… this was gruesome.

A man stood frozen in the middle of rubble, blood trickling from his nose and ears. A muffled gargle escaped the man’s throat. Shisui gulped at the thought of the genjutsu Itachi mustve been casting. If that was his power without Manekyo, enemies should pray he never experienced a violent loss of a loved one.

Shisui watched the man drop to his knees, not quite lifeless yet, but his arms had been twisted and broken into odd shapes and angles that probably even Tsunade couldn’t straighten up. Itachi was over the man in an instant, crushing the man’s knees with practiced accuracy. Shisui has never seen Itachi so out of control.

The younger Uchiha caught the man by his shirt’s collar and threw him into, and through, a pile of rubble. Not quite satisfied, Itachi strolled towards the man’s bloodied body and repeated the action. And then once again, seemingly just for good measure. The man wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Shisui was about to intervene when he heard Itachi sneer.

“How was it, _Mukade-sama_ , have I been good? Because this is a _treat_.”

The older Uchiha held himself back realizing what had transpired between the two. If it wasn’t Itachi’s right, he’d be clawing the man’s intestines with his bare hands right about now. But it was something Itachi had the right to do.

 _This man_ , Shisui thought, _deserves to die_.

Itachi moved back, a mixture of fresh blood and tears staining his face. The boy surprised Shisui when he clenched his fists as he kicked the man unconscious. Itachi was back in control.

Only then Itachi’s eyes met Shisui’s startled and angry ones. The fury gave way to fear, anxiety and pain, and Itachi broke. His knees gave out, the boy crumbled with a sob that physically hurt Shisui in the chest.

The older Uchiha was by Itachi’s side in a shunshin. He feared touching the boy. He looked so fragile.

Shisui had no idea how long he sat by Itachi’s side. The sun slowly neared the horizon and the boy kept sobbing.

“Itachi,” Shisui said hoping to gain some attention. “‘Tachi. It’s me, Shisui.”

The boy looked up for a second before another wave of sobs rocked his body. Shisui reached out to the boy.

“Don’t touch me!” Itachi scrambled away.

“I won’t, I won’t.” Shisui assured. “Look at me.”

Itachi stirred a bit before meeting his gaze.

“You’d like to go to sleep, right?” The Mangekyo in Shisui’s eyes spun in soothing circles and Itachi felt his consciousness fade into nothing.

* * *

Kakashi saw the boys exit the tunnel in a mix of panic and euphoria. His dogs ran out to block the entrance and greet the boys before the shinobi jumped from the treeline.

“You’re Konoha’s Copy Nin! We’re saved!” One of the boys exclaimed but Kakashi could see the others cower in fear.

“I’m not here to hurt you.” He tried.

“Where’s the other ninja? The one from before?”

“Shisui isn’t with you?”

“He stayed to fight of the other ninja.”

“Fuck.” Kakashi cursed under his breath. “I’m sure he’ll be alright. Let’s get you back to the town and find your parents.”

He counted the boys quickly before leading them through a forest path. His dogs walked around them in formation, sniffing for enemies around them. They have thankfully found none.

The boys followed with heads turned towards the ground. It worried the shinobi; they may never recover from the abuse.

They were greeted by the police force at the gate. Kakashi watched as the boys shivered and pulled their hands out of anyone tried to grab them. He had to actually tell the officers to stop and wait for the medics.

Onlookers gathered around them. They were causing a scene.

The white-haired shinobi knew the boys didn’t need more attractions for one day, and ordered them moved to the city hall.

He was about to go back towards Shisui when a boy tugged at his pants.

“Shinobi-san, do you think Itachi and Shisui will be okay?”

“I’m sure, they’re amazing shinobi,” Kakashi tried to downplay the boy’s worry.

“They did things to Itachi, that’s why he went after them after letting us out.” The boy said. It caught Kakashi’s attention. The shinobi kneeled down to look the boy in the eyes.

“He didn’t return, Shisui-san came. Then he stopped in the tunnel and then we saw you.” The boy looked concerned.

“What’s your name?”

“Ryuuchi.”

“They both are very strong shinobi, these ninja that took you had only numbers, they have the skills. They will be fine.” Kakashi tried to ease the boy’s worry but it wasn’t easy with his own rising. Something has pushed Shisui to unlock the full Susanoo and he feared the worst.

“You sure?”

“Absolutely, I trust them with my life.”

“When will we see our families?” The boy cracked a smile.

“After the medics look at you. Spending so much time without daylight isn’t healthy.” Kakashi smiled back before leading the boy to the town hall.

“I miss my sister.” Kakashi heard the boy murmur.

“Is her name Ryuuka?” The shinobi asked, connecting the boy to the girl he met with Shisui.

“You know her?”

“I’ll get her, and you please stay here and wait for the medics, okay?”

A moment later the medics arrived and Kakashi had to busy himself with managing the reports and replying to questions. He asked a police officer to go fetch all relatives of kidnapped boys that resided in the area.

Only when the sun started setting, he left the rest to Squirrel’s command and finally darted across the field towards the storehouse.

They were both alive, he felt both chakras as he stood among the rubble. Kakashi stopped when he heard movement. He turned towards the sound and after a few steps he saw something that would ingrain itself into his brain for a long time. A mangled body laid sprawled across the rubble. Blood has already dried in places creating a gruesome sight. But what scared him the most was Shisui’s tear and blood streaked face and a limp Itachi in his arms.

“Is he?” Kakashi couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.

“He’s alive. Had to put him in a coma.”

“Are you alright?” Kakashi asked further, scanning the other shinobi for injuries.

“Scratches. The blood’s mostly not mine.”

“Does he need a medic?”

“In Konoha, I doubt he wants this town to see him in such state.”

“Do we have the time?”

“He’s physically fine as far as I could tell. Take the man into custody, he’s still alive.”

Shisui’s replies were mechanical. Kakashi knew better than to ask further questions. Plus, he dreaded finding out what happened. He looked towards the barely-breathing body, the man was broken in more places than Kakashi bothered to count.

“Let’s get back. The boys are under our medics’ care.”

Kakashi sent his dogs to collect their things from the inn, and he left Shisui’s side to leave the man in the police-force’s custody. They weren’t happy about being used as mules, but the oldest shinobi settled it with a promise of sausages and barbecue when they got back. Squirrel caught up to them an hour later, her hair down and moves evidently tired. They travelled in silence.

Shisui washed his face when they stopped by a stream. Dust and dried up blood flowed down to his elbows as he tried getting everything out of his eyelashes.

They decided to stop there for the night. Kakashi readied the sleeping bags as Shisui lit the fire. Itachi’s face looked even paler in the warm light.

“Have you seen Hog since the bordello?” Squirrel broke the silence. None of them had, so the two men left the question hang in the air.

“He deserted?” she asked further, her unmasked face sombre.

“He just disappeared right before battle,” Kakashi nodded. “I think that’s desertion. We’ll issue a warrant for his head once we reach Konoha.”

Shisui glued his eyes into the dancing flames, watched them lick and gnaw at the wood. The soft cracking was accompanied by Kakashi and Squirrel’s quiet conversation.

“I’ve never seen him like that.” The Uchiha started when his comrades fell silent. “He was cruel, ruthless.”

“He’s been hurt,” Kakashi noted. “And revenge runs deep in your clan.”

“But Itachi would never be so...” Shisui shook his head. “So violent.”

“Don’t look too much into it. I’m sure he still is the little prodigy we know.” Squirrel tried assuring but her voice wasn’t optimistic.

Shisui kept Itachi unconscious all the way to Konoha. Of course, he took a cloth and wiped away the grime from his face but he didn’t dare do anything else in fear of what he may see. Otherwise, the boy lay in Shisui’s arms as his far cousin carried him home.

* * *

Itachi woke up in a hospital room. The events from Tako came crashing into his mind, the graphic visuals made permanent by the Mangekyo. He took a second to wonder what it looked like. Not that it mattered.

His body was sore, the burn marks aches and stung under the gauze wrappings. A machine beeped slowly by his side with a set of tubes and cables plugged in. Most of his body was covered in gauze, he noticed.

Itachi tried to sit up. An uncomfortable yet horribly familiar tugging in his behind stopped him. Did it happen again?

His mind went blank, the tightness in his chest suffocated him as his lungs burned for air. His head felt at once heavy and light and water seemed to slush in his ears, or was it eyes?

Someone came into the room, probably alerted by the machine’s sudden new rhythm. Itachi was far too gone to see who it was before the darkness took him once again.

He woke up again to a nurse checking something on his board. She looked up with a friendly smile hearing him shuffle.

“Good afternoon Itachi-san,” she greeted.

“How long was I out?”

“You were brought here two days ago with chakra depletion and various physical injuries,” she answered. “You woke up this morning but fell back under shortly.” She didn’t meet his eyes when she said that. Itachi knew why, he’d fainted.

“Uh, you know what happened, right?” Itachi asked.

“We’ve been informed.”

“Who’s my doctor?”

“Hyūga Hanako, she also performed the surgery.”

“Surgery?”

“I’ll call her in, she’ll explain everything better.”

The nurse left shortly after that, only asking a few more questions about his injuries.

Itachi’s lay in the hospital bed and couldn’t help but think something was different than all the other times he’d woken up there. It was too quiet.

Usually he could hear rustling from behind the door, maybe some chatter or even screams of pain. A hospital was never so quiet. He wanted to get out of bed and see why there wasn’t anybody near him but the sting in his bottom reminded him to stay put. Instead he checked for genjutsu and chakra barriers indicating that something’s gone wrong.

Everything was as it was supposed to be, no chakra barriers apart from a light seal on his door and definitely no genjutsu.

Twisting a little he looked as best as he could out the window. He could see rooftops and the training grounds typical for Konoha. He was home, finally.

A knock sounded followed by the door cracking open. A middle-aged woman with long dark brown hair came in, her eyes a distinct pale shade of grey. Most likely the Hyūga doctor the nurse talked about.

“Welcome back, Itachi-san. I’m Hyūga Hanako, your doctor.” She greeted, closing the door behind her.

Itachi gave her a polite nod.

“Are you feeling alright?”

“I guess.”

“Are you alright enough to talk about your injuries?” There was concern in her voice.

“Yes,” Itachi’s said, though he wasn’t entirely sure.

“I know you had a panic attack this morning, it’s normal to react this way.” She tried. Her voice was soothing and laced with an almost motherly concern.

“O-okay.”

“You were brought here by Shisui Uchiha who put you to sleep using Kotoamatsukami. You were unconscious for a total of four and a half days, two of which were in a medical sedation.

“You have awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan. For the next week or so you may experience troubles with activating your sharingan along with a burning sensation in your eyes. This is also perfectly normal.” She explained.

“Okay,” Itachi nodded.

“Thankfully, the change did not cause any substantial damage to your eyes.”

“That’s not so normal.” Itachi pointed.

“Yes, but it is a bright side of things.” She gave him a sad smile.

“My-” Itachi feared asking that question. “My body?”

“Even if we weren’t informed of what happened the damage to your rectum and back is unmistakable.” Hanako said, Itachi averted his eyes. “Otherwise there were some scratches and bruises, along with some scrapes on your knees and shoulders suggesting you slept on the floor or a thin bedroll.”

“Yeah,” Itachi confirmed.

“Only those directly involved have been notified of what happened.”

“My parents?”

“We told them you got beat up during the escape. And that you’re not ready to have any visitors.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re probably wondering why is it so quiet. We’ve placed you in ICU. It’s calmer here, mostly comatose patients and some post-surgery.”

“Oh, okay. The nurse said something about a surgery?”

“I had to clean up and reopen the tears in your rectum.” Hanako said. “You directed chakra there and it healed it up but the scarring could leave you with chronic pain and other problems. It could be a handicap during missions from which I doubt you’d withdraw.”

“Thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uhhh, this was a pain to write, and I've written most of it on my phone and then transferred it into Word, then to AO3 so the formatting may have been a bit off.
> 
> Oh, and if you find any typos or weird-out-of-context words please do point them out - I may have missed something my autocorrect supplied. For example, a sentence I caught: "Only when the sun started setting, he finally farted across the field towards the storehouse."


	4. Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Reposted
> 
> Basically what happens after Itachi and Shisui are back from Tako.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry, I know I'm a week late!

“I need to give my report to the Hokage,” Itachi realized. “It’s two days late.”

“It can wait. Your comrades gave sufficient accounts to convict and incarcerate these monsters.”

“I’m the captain.”

“Right, the mission squad had been extended to Hatake Kakashi after Shisui-san sent a crow for backup. He overtook since you’ve been incapacitated.”

“When will I be able to leave?” Itachi asked.

“When you feel well enough.”

It was a vague answer, but it did soothe the boy’s nerves. He didn’t feel like facing the world just yet. The confinement of a hospital bed gave him a feeling of safety and care, which was welcome.

“How bad will my body be?”

“There will be some visible scaring there and we couldn’t do more for the burn marks. We slowed down the healing process you initiated so the scars won’t be so visible.” The doctor answered. Her hair was lined with a few white strands, Itachi noted, as she came nearer and sat on the chair by his bed. She placed her things on the nightstand.

“How many are there?” Itachi wasn’t sure he wanted to know, but the words had already left his mouth.

“Seventeen,” Hanako looked at him with concern, “but some looked as if they were re-burned.”

“Are they very bad?”

“I’m sure your future spouse won’t mind. They’ll fade with time.”

“They’ll still be visible.”

“I’m afraid so, we may think of a remedial surgery in a few years, though.”

“Why not now?” Itachi really wanted these marks to disappear.

“The scarring would become even worse if we touched the skin now.”

“Oh,” Itachi nodded. “Is that why I’m covered in gauze?”

“Yes, but also to help preventing psychological collapses like the one you’ve experienced in the morning.”

Itachi only nodded. He was thankful his parents hadn’t been informed what happened by the hospital but he had no way of knowing if Shisui told them. From what he had gathered, he wasn’t allowed visitors. The soft padded cuffs present at the sides of his bed suggested that he was on a psychological watch, which to be honest, wasn’t surprising. It was protocol and Itachi knew everything about protocols. He also knew that he broke it by impulsively mauling Mukade before detaining him.

The sole thought of the man sent shivers down his spine. The machine beeped in what seemed to be a warning.

Hanako looked at him again with these worry-filled eyes and Itachi wanted to scream. He wasn’t suicidal and he surely didn’t need pity. What he needed was for these scars to disappear.

“I’ll be back later to look at your wrappings,” she stated. Hanako gathered her notepad and put a strand of hair behind her ear. “Let me know if you want us to let anyone visit.”

Itachi was once again left alone. The bright sun came in through the window

It wasn’t until three days later that Itachi asked to be moved out of ICU. He knew the confrontation with his parents had to come eventually and dragging it out was pointless. He had to get it over with and start moving on.

He didn’t call for Shisui nor Kakashi. They knew, they saw him right after, they’d pity him.

Mikoto came in right after she was notified. She brought sweets, flowers and Itachi’s childhood blanket along with clothes for him to change into. The way her face paled when she saw him, though, made Itachi’s stomach churn.

“My son,” she whispered, “my son, oh my dear. You’ve worried me so much.”

“Mother,” Itachi started. The rest of his words dried in his throat. Mikoto didn’t seem to notice as she put the stuff away an opened the window. After all, she was used to seeing her son in the hospital.

“Mother,” Itachi started again, “I have to tell you something.”

“What is it my dear?” She sat in the chair beside his bed. Her hands enveloped one of his own and he welcomed the touch.

“Mother, they… they did things to me.”

Mikoto eyed her son’s face searching for any inclination towards what he had meant by ‘things’. His sunken eyes kept darting towards his body, his lips trembled with unshed tears and held-back sobs. She’s seen the look once, a long time ago on one of her friends, after a mission-gone-wrong.

She blanched, her eyes went wide and her lips parted. Mikoto froze with her gaze on Itachi’s face. She almost withdrew her hand.

There were no more words between them, only Mikoto’s silent tears and a frightened expression as she sat for what felt like hours on Itachi’s bedside chair. Itachi cried too, for the first time in a long while. The tears felt foreign on his cheeks, the ache in his throat and burning in his eyes all to unknown and forgotten for Itachi to recognise as his own.

The sun set down before any of them spoke.

“I love you, Itachi,” Mikoto assured. “I’ll love you no matter what.”

“Mother, I’ll be fine,” he soothed.

“I don’t know how or why it happened, but don’t you dare” she looked him deep in the eyes, “don’t you dare blame yourself.”

“I won’t, I promise,” Itachi lied, the words left his lips seamlessly.

“I’ll won’t tell your father; you don’t worry about that.”

“Nobody can know.”

“I know your father will always be on and by your side, my son.”

“I don’t want to stress him out, he has enough on his mind. Please…”

Mikoto didn’t reply to that, only a sad smile had painted itself on her lips.

Itachi’s cried again after she left. She held his hand and assured him a thousand times of her love and support. Her lips left a butterfly-like kiss on his forehead right before she went back to the compound.

It was late in the evening when the nurse came back. Itachi had managed to stop crying before dinner, but the reddened cheeks were still present along with eyes that became a dull charcoal instead of the brilliant obsidian.

The nurse pretended not to see the marks that the tears left on his cheeks and with a soft nod she started putting him under a light anaesthetic - he still couldn’t bear feeling others’ hands on his body, even during a mundane bandage change.

Itachi knew he’d wake up the next morning, they’ve tried letting him fall asleep without the meds but it didn’t exactly work. So, they combined the dressing change with his sleep.

Maybe his mother’s touch was soothing because he’d known her all his life, nevertheless any other touch, even accidental had him fighting to escape. He’d have to get that under control. His father wouldn’t allow him to withdraw from active duty or even ANBU. His job as ANBU captain secured the whole clan’s position in the village, after all.

Itachi’s fell into the dark embrace of dreamless sleep, his last sight being the nurse leaning over him with a sad smile and a soft ‘goodnight, Itachi-san’.

* * *

Shisui had been released from the hospital the next day after being admitted. Minor chakra exhaustion got him under an IV drip and the doctors decided to patch up the few scrapes and scratches he donned. They wouldn’t let him see Itachi, though. He knew his clanmate had been taken to the intensive care unit, and one nurse didn’t bite his tongue and spilled that Itachi had undergone a surgery - but that was all the information he could get. Shisui had no idea what state Itachi was in or if he was even awake. The unknown drove him mad.

What didn’t help was that Kakashi and Yamato were sent back to Tako to look over the rubble and retrieve evidence while Squirrel disappeared to her usual duties. The Hokage was also organising the move of the prisoners to Konoha for investigation and eventual incarceration, all without his presence. Looking for Hog was left to another ANBU squad.

He paced pack and forth in his apartment. It wasn’t much, but had a decent pacing-distance between the kitchen nook and the living room window. The floor bore evidence of his pacing routine in the form of worn-down polish. Shisui suspected that it would soon have a proper trough there.

It’s been three days since Shisui got out of the hospital and he spent them on giving continuous reports to the Hokage and the council. Even with his constant nagging, they wouldn’t let him know more either about the captured ninja or Hog’s whereabouts.

Lord Fourth Had warned him, though, not to mention to the council that Itachi had been raped - only severely injured in battle. They didn’t have to know the Uchiha heir had been defiled. They shouldn’t know. The council’s views on the whole Uchiha clan were rather resentful as it was, and giving them a reason to disregard them further or even plot of a way to upturn the clan’s structure was less than appealing. At least Minato knew that.

The hospital staff still wouldn’t let him know if Itachi was awake. He brought him there for fucks sake. He should be at least allowed to know when he woke up!

Shisui found himself in a liquor store and before he thought better, a well-sized bottle of sake and a few beers landed in his cart. The seller gave him a look as he paid. Buying liquor was one of the perks of being a shinobi – it made you an adult by law since obtaining genin rank and allowed for purchasing cigarettes and alcohol, among other sides of emancipation, since the age of 15. Shisui found a nice discount on the receipt, he didn’t mind.

 _I must look horrible,_ he thought on his way home.

And he did. His hair was tangled and sweaty from the constant worry, making his natural curls look like a worn-out mop. The clothes he wore were rumpled and mismatched – he didn’t present himself this bad even after the most tiring missions. A shower could still wait till morning.

Shisui got home, his dusty apartment welcoming him with the soft creek of doors and the smell of unaired rooms. He made his way to the sofa, not bothering to take his shoes off. With a soft ‘tssk’ the first bottle popped open.

He woke up to a thundering headache and cold sweat all over his body. The sunlight made the world spiral in front of his eyes, and physically hurt his brain.

He fell back onto the couch with a groan. He had to get up, sure, but maybe he’d let the world stop spinning. The headache had to wait until he was able to get to the kitchen without damaging himself or the apartment. Shisui closed his eyes again.

When the time came to finally get up - it was probably a few hours later, but Shisui had no way of knowing - the headache lowered into a pressure in his skull, and the world found its balance again.

The young shinobi paddled to the kitchen and almost blindly reached for pills. Letting too much light into his eyes still hurt. Shisui popped two and swallowed them dry.

He ran to the sink as the pills scratched like sandpaper down his throat.

Shisui was bent uncomfortably as he gulped the water straight from the tap, his knuckles white from gripping the counter. This, for some reason, was the moment a crow knocked on his window.

He let the bird sit on his wrist as he untangled the message.

“ _Dear Shisui,”_ the letter read, “ _I want to tell you that Itachi-kun is awake,”_ Shisui had to squint to see the neat letters in the blinding sun. _“His wounds are healing well. He will be released from the hospital once his sutures are taken out. He isn’t ready for visitors. Please come for tea tomorrow. Regards, Mikoto.”_

Itachi was awake. Shisui set the note on the counter and groaned. His suspicions were true. No matter how hard he wanted to believe this was all a dream, that he wasn’t an idiot for letting Itachi go there alone, the reality wouldn’t budge.

The invitation for tea, however, presented a whole new set of problems and worries. He’s been invited to dinners and breakfasts even, but tea was a whole other level. It was either Mikoto trying to offer some consolation (which would be nice, because Mikoto was very motherly to everyone), or a nice way of inviting him to one of Fugaku’s interrogations (which would _not so nice_ ). Either way he was in no position to decline the offer.

That also meant he would have to remain sober for the whole day.

The alcohol drowned out his worries and thoughts and left him numb. It was what he’d been doing for the past few days since he got out from the hospital, and it worked, and he didn’t plan on stopping until he could see and talk to Itachi. Well…

Shisui didn’t look forward to spending the whole evening with his hungover self.

Sweating it all out seemed a rational-enough idea, and so Shisui entered one of the common training grounds – he wanted to avoid someone from the clan seeing him in this state.

Shisui started slow. A few push-ups and three laps around the grounds got his blood running. The straw mannequins looked at him with their red, haphazardly painted faces. Knocking them out of their posts would bring the calm the shinobi sought.

As a speed-based shinobi he took his time with the taijutsu routine, each movement agonizingly slow and perfectly executed. Practicing this way let him clear his mind and it helped with embedding the movements deep into his muscle memory. It made him able to rely on his skills in battle – even if the punches were hasty, they would land and carry enough force to make an impact.

He’d love to do some speed training, but doing it alone had no purpose. The only people in the village able to help him were Itachi and Kakashi – both currently unavailable.

The thought of Itachi made him stop mid-turn. Shisui dropped to the ground, his gaze trailing over Konoha’s rooftops. The greenery around him rustled in the soft wind, and the noises from the village created a pleasant hum.

His eyes focused on the hospital. The building wasn’t very tall and its white tile covering glistened in the afternoon shine. Shisui looked from window to window wondering if, by any chance, Itachi was in one of them.

 _That’s all for today, I guess,_ Shisui thought getting up. His headache has substantially subsided by now, and the sun stopped bothering his eyes.

It was time to get some actual food into his stomach.

“Shisui-nii,” he heard little Sasuke call when he entered the booth of Ichiraku Ramen. “Come sit with us!”

“Hey, Sasuke-kun,” Shisui greeted with a graceful nod. At home Shisui couldn’t be bothered with proper manners and addressing his superiors with the proper respect; especially that Mikoto had grown on him as if she were his own mother, and Sasuke was like a little brother – addressing the little boy with an honorific seemed off.

Outside home, however, Shisui was on his best behaviour. If someone had perceived him as disrespectful his father and mother could lose the clan’s aid among other repercussions. He couldn’t have that.

Shisui bowed his head to the nanny Sasuke was with and another woman who sat by Naruto in a polite greeting. The little blond boy couldn’t be bothered with any manners as he devoured his bowl of ramen. It was amazing that at only five this kid could go through two portions of the noodles without throwing up later.

The shinobi engrossed himself in a polite chat with the two women, both asking him about the mission he had been on with Itachi. Shisui caught Sasuke listening in.

“Itachi-san’s doing very well, though he suffered some injuries and had exhausted his chakra. He remains in the hospital for observation. As the heir to the Uchiha he is given very thorough care so there will be no lasting effects.” He cut the story short. He hoped that it would cut any rumours about the severity of the young ANBU’s state.

He had also told them the mission was very challenging and that Itachi was very brave and professional, and that he didn’t know anyone as skilled as him. All other information was thankfully classified.

He dug into his noodles to further accentuate the point.

The two women fawned over how amazing Itachi was and what a great honour it was for Sasuke’s nanny to be a member of the same clan. Shisui didn’t feel the need to join in on that.

Instead he watched Sasuke bicker with Naruto over one thing or another. If it wasn’t for Sasuke’s breeding the young Uchiha would’ve been at the blond boy’s throat in an instant. Shisui’s chuckle stopped the fight.

“What are you laughing at, Shisui-nii?”

“You think we’re funny?” Naruto chimed in, still agitated.

“I just miss being so young.” Shisui answered honestly, though it didn’t seem to satisfy the two boys.

“I can’t wait to grow up and be a great shinobi like you and Itachi-niisan!” Sasuke argued.

“I want to be Hokage like my father, dattebayo!” Naruto added.

“You need to learn how to read if you want to be Hokage,” Sasuke commented, spawning another yelling match between the two.

The young shinobi excused himself, and bid the two bickering boys goodbye with a soft bow.

Shisui spent the rest of the evening rearranging his apartment. It was the only thing that could get him to stop thinking for a longer period of time. Ever since he moved out from his parents’ house he had to adapt to his surroundings, learn proper manners and survive. Cleaning things let him have control over _something_.

It was late and he probably reeked of cleaning supplies when he finally crashed onto his bed. But even though Shisui was as tired as he could get, sleep refused to come. He turned and shuffled in the sheets long into the odd hours of the night when the clouds on his mind thickened enough to let him rest.

* * *

Itachi took to gazing out the window once he was able to stand. The sutures still itched and tugged with every move, but at least he didn’t feel the ripping pain.

The window and the books his mother brought were the only entertainment he could get throughout the day. He could let visitors in, all he had to do was say the words. Itachi couldn’t bring himself to face Shisui, though, and he knew he’d be the first to come through the door. So he remained alone with his window and his books.

It was a nice afternoon when he stood by the window, listening in to the hum of the village and watching the leaves shuffle on the breeze.

A figure caught his eye. It was quite far away, on one of the training grounds. The man - it was definitely a him - did a set of push-ups. The figure moved then onto taijutsu, his movements slow and elegant. It took Itachi a minute to recognise the routine. The familiar stances and transitions made his body unconsciously follow and he had to stop himself.

Why was Shisui using the common training grounds?

Anyway, it was mesmerising to watch. Even with the movements painstakingly slow, each punch or kick carried a deadly force which made the straw mannequins all but explode upon impact.

It was almost like a dance. Almost, because Itachi remembered being on the receiving end of one of these punches.

Itachi moved away from the window. He couldn’t bare looking at Shisui any longer, the sight making his insides churn with shame and regret.

How could’ve he let himself be mutilated like that? He couldn’t look Shisui in the eye. Not after failing so miserably at following protocol or goddamn self-preservation.

 _But the mission always comes first,_ Itachi rationalised in the silence of his hospital room.

 _It was necessary,_ he thought further.

The click of the door interrupted his thoughts. A nurse came in with a tray and an unusually giddy smile. Itachi couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow, eyeing her carefully.

“Good evening, Itachi-san,” she greeted. “I come with news.”

“Good evening, is there something wrong?”

“No!” She set the tray on his bedside table. “Quite the contrary.”

Itachi looked at the tray, it had the usual teapot and a cup, and if his eyes weren’t betraying him, right there, on a little plate, laid dango. Itachi’s mouth watered.

“Your favourite, I’m told.” The nurse encouraged.

“Thank you.” Itachi was already reaching for the sweet, chewy goodness.

“You will be released next Monday.” She said happily.

Itachi looked at her with wide eyes.

“But that’s in only three days.” He barely remembered to swallow before speaking.

The nurse made some notes on his chart. She hummed softly and waved her pen at the paper.

“Your injuries are healing well, and we will be taking the sutures out on Sunday,” she said. “You’ll have to come by twice a week for dressing changes and consultations.”

“When will I return to active duty?”

“After you are fully healed and pass psychological exams.”

“Exams?”

“The same one you took before being admitted into ANBU.” Her voice cracked a little. “You will also have to meet with the council.”

Itachi shared her worry. These exams were made to check for psychological damage, provoke anger and fear, and to evaluate aptitude for all types of missions. Meeting with the council, however, was another story. Itachi felt a lump form in his throat, and a cold sweat on his back.

“Thank you.”

The nurse changed the topic then, briefing him on what exercises he’d have to do, how to do them, and when to do them. She also assured that he would receive another briefing on Monday.

Itachi was once again left alone after that.

* * *

Shisui paced back and forth between the living room window and the kitchen. If he spared it a thought, he’d swear the worn-down hardwood was indeed grooved along the path.

His mind was occupied, though, by the tea Mikoto invited him to. He tried to complete the mental checklist he made, but his thoughts raced faster than he could actually _think_ them. Shisui tried to ignore the slight ringing in his ears.

He wore his second-best shirt with the Uchiha crest embroidered on the back and standard shinobi pants (mostly because he didn’t have any other). His sandals were freshly cleaned, the black leather shiny with all the polish. He even cut all his nails and tried styling his curly hair into something better than a wild bird’s nest. It wasn’t easy without his headband holding it in check.

It was time to go, he knew. Being late to Mikoto’s summon wasn’t on his agenda. Yet somehow, he couldn’t bring himself to leave. What did she want? Why was he invited? Is everything really alright with Itachi? How is he feeling?

All these questions crammed in his head, and he felt like his eardrums would burst from the pressure.

Shisui looked at the clock and cursed. He’ll be late.

Thankfully, he wasn’t late. The young shinobi, however arrived panting and covered in cold sweat that didn’t come from running. He planned on not using chakra that day, but desperate times call for desperate measures. At least that’s how he rationalised using the shunshin to get to Itachi’s house.

He did not expect little Sasuke to run out the front door and latch his arms around his knees in a tight hug. The knee-crushing grip softened and Shisui could look up without fearing he’d tumble to the ground.

Mikoto stood by the threshold, her hair down and falling onto her back. Itachi really did look a lot like his mother with that hair of his.

Shisui ruffled the boy’s hair which earned him a displeased huff, but Sasuke finally released him from the embrace. Shisui bowed to Mikoto once he reached the door. Fugaku was nowhere in sight which was both calming and agitating.

“Come in, Shisui.”

The young shinobi went into the house and took of his shoes. It was weirdly quiet without Sasuke nagging Itachi and empty without the ANBU reading yet another book in the armchair in the corner.

“I’ll bring the tea, go sit down.” Mikoto instructed with her typical soft smile that did reach her eyes.

Shisui obliged, tugging Sasuke along to the living area.

“I’m sorry to ask, Mikoto-san, but why did you invite me?” the young man asked when she came back with the tea.

“I need you to tell me exactly what happened on this mission. The doctors only told me the…” she looked to the window “…essence.”

Shisui sat nervously on the couch with Sasuke suddenly glued to his side. He couldn’t stop the fidgeting of his fingers and the heat rising in his throat.

“Mikoto-san, I’m not sure it’s the best...” he glanced at the young boy “...time.”

„Just tell us what you can, please.”

The begging tone in her voice sent shivers down the shinobi’s spine.

“We were sent to investigate the kidnappings, our sources led us to Tako, so the Hokage chose Itachi to go undercover. He’s the right age.” Shisui’s eyes never left the floor as he spoke. “The beginning went well, Itachi was taken by the rouge-nin.”

He could feel Sasuke cuddling into his side.

“I went into the town and did some digging from the outside.” Shisui continued. “I found the place where the boys were used for...” he stopped to think of a good word, “...hard labour.”

Shisui started shivering, but it wasn’t from the draft.

“Shisui...” Mikoto tried her motherly voice.

“It’s not all,” Shisui choked out, “i called for backup as soon as I figured it out, but it was too late. They’d already...”

Shisui started rocking back and forth. Something wet trickled down his face and He wanted to hide from Sasuke’s intent stare.

“I was too late! I failed him, I failed you!”

It was quiet after that. Not that Shisui noticed. He let the barricaded feelings flow and couldn’t think of anything else.

_I failed, I let everybody down, I let Itachi down._

_I’m useless, I can’t even protect my clan. How should I protect the whole village?_

_I failed them all. I’ll never look Itachi in the eyes again._

“You’ve done everything you could. I know you went there with Itachi despite the Hokage’s objections.” Mikoto engulfed him in a hug. “You’ve done everything you could.”

“Not enough,” Shisui whispered between sobs.

“You saved all these boys. Kami knows how long it would take Itachi to do it all alone?” She assured further.

“I’m sorry, Mikoto-san, I have to go.” Shisui got up and out of the embrace.

Mikoto reached out after him, her voice filled with concern.

“Shisui...”

“I’m sorry, I have to go. Goodnight.” The young shinobi left; his cup of tea long gone cold on the table.


	5. Nothing Changes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter Reposted
> 
> Basically, we're kinda over the rape part, and we're moving forward a few months. Some new mysteries unveil and Itachi is trying to cope with everything.

It may have been alarming that his father didn’t greet him upon his return from the hospital, but Itachi was too tired to actually care. He was actually glad he didn’t have to face his father’s judging glare just yet.

“Welcome home, son,” Mikoto smiled at him. Sasuke was already squealing and dangling from his leg with reckless joy and a thousand questions. Itachi swallowed the yelp of pain.

He trudged to the door with Sasuke latched onto his leg as the younger boy decided to “never ever, ever let Itachi go on dangerous missions ever again”. To ensure that, Sasuke had apparently decided to hang from Itachi’s pant leg for the rest of eternity.

“Sasuke, I can’t go up the stairs like that.”

“But you can!”

“I’m still a bit hurt,” Itachi cooed, “let me heal before we do that again, okay?” He bent down to ruffle the boy’s hair.

“Sasuke, look, the cherry tomatoes are ripening,” their mother called from the kitchen. And so, ‘never ever, ever letting Itachi go on dangerous missions ever again’ was long forgotten.

Sasuke disappeared into the house in a blink and the heir was left with nothing but to follow. The evening sun glistened in the windows and bathed everything in golden shadows. Even at this hour it made Itachi’s skin tingle with warmth.

The wooden porch squeaked under his feet.

Itachi left his shoes at the door. His shoulders relaxed, but the heaviness in his stomach stayed, to his dismay. The house looked just as he remembered, maybe with some new flowers blooming here and there. As usual, it greeted him with the smell of baking and fresh laundry. But it didn’t _feel_ the same, the young ANBU noticed. He couldn’t exactly pinpoint what had changed and it bothered him.

 _Its probably just me,_ he concluded after walking around the kitchen and living room. _I’m getting paranoid._

Itachi didn’t step into his father’s office. His father was absent – the light was off.

The office itself wasn’t a place he was allowed in without Fugaku’s presence despite his heir status. Instead, Itachi decided to check the personally despised audience room, which was empty and devoid of any decoration, save the large Uchiha crest gracing the wall over the Head’s seat. The lingering smell of ink and old paper made him want to sneeze.

The day was slowly coming to an end when Itachi finally decided to ask about his father. They were all sitting at the coffee table engrossed in reading, and Sasuke was already dozing off. Itachi knew not why their father was absent, and that caused a sense of unease to settle in his neck.

“He went to meet with the clan elders,” Mikoto must’ve read his expression. Her nose was buried in a book but Itachi didn’t miss the frown on her features.

There was no point waiting up for Fugaku. The meetings would more often than not last long into the odd hours of the night and then start again in the morning only to drag through the whole day. It wouldn’t be unusual for his father to return home exhausted at the same time Itachi would leave for early patrols or missions.

Itachi bid his mother goodnight.

A quiet hiss escaped his lips on the stairs. The fresh scars tugged and ached more in the evenings. Even the pain of burn marks, to which the Uchiha were usually resistant, seemed to intensify.

His room was barren of any decorations save for the window, which held all the meticulously collected evidence of Sasuke’s accomplishments in the form of photos, hand-drawn pictures and painted flowerpots. A soft smile tugged at the corners of Itachi’s mouth.

He went to undress, too tired to unwrap his bandages and take a shower. The bed felt foreign on Itachi’s skin. The sturdy futon resting upon the wooden frame was too delicate. The feather-filled blanket and pillow were too soft. Every gentle touch of the bedsheets bothered and itched despite having no reason to.

Itachi couldn’t exactly say what was causing it, but the room felt different, unsafe.

Trying to fall asleep was pointless, he soon found out. The shadows crawling and stretching up and down the walls composed an eerie sight for an already on edge shinobi. Even though he knew it shouldn’t bother him, he couldn’t do anything about the creeps on his shoulders. He sat down on the floor in the corner of his room.

Itachi could see the whole room from his spot. It eased his nerves a little despite the hardwood scraping at his knees. His position gave him enough security to dose off for a while. It was a light nap, just enough to let the body rest and the mind wander.

Morning came before he fully fell asleep. The sun’s silver light shone through the window diffused by the sheer blinds he put up ages ago. It was time to get up.

His joints protested at the movement, numbed from the cold floor. A soft crack from his neck was audible in the silent room. He couldn’t focus and dwell on his joints now, though, as a sharp tug reminded him of most recent events.

 _Shower,_ Itachi thought when he got up.

The corridor smelled of cooking breakfast and his stomach growled in anticipation.

 _Shower,_ he thought again, ignoring the stiff sensation in his middle.

The simple act proved to be a challenge. Not only did he have to undress and see his own body, but his scars still stung under the hot water.

Itachi decided to endure the spray a bit longer. Maybe it would wash off the grime that seemed embedded into and under his skin. The steamy air tightened his airways and dazed his mind. Anything was better than seeing his father just yet.

He did eventually go downstairs. His steps were featherlight, barely audible against the hardwood floor. The sounds of a pleasant conversation came all the way up to his ears and Itachi couldn’t help the warmth settling in his chest right beside the cold dread.

His father sat at the kitchen table, engrossed in today’s newspaper while Mikoto chirped about her plans and thoughts.

“Good morning, father, mother.” Itachi’s unsure voice announced his entrance.

“Good morning, son,” Fugaku looked up. “How is your recovery?”

“I am recovering well, thank you.”

After a moment of silence Itachi moved to fix himself some sandwiches from what his mother had laid out on the table. The crunchy yet soft homemade bread smelled of hot air and yeast, freshly taken out of the oven. He couldn’t be bothered to sit down before digging in.

“When will you be returning to active duty?” His father interrupted him mid-bite with a stern expression on his face.

Itachi swallowed. “As soon as I am able to pass the exams.” He shifted his weight but otherwise stood straight.

“They’ve never made you take any exams after recovery before.” Fugaku took a sip of his tea.

“This mission carried potential for psychological trauma, its standard procedure to evaluate ANBU shinobi after such missions. Ensures safety of village secrets and ability to work under various pressure.”

Fugaku nodded in understanding. “Are you aware of the current clan situation?”

“I am.” Itachi really didn’t want to have that conversation, he’s only just been let out of the hospital and he was still so _tired._

“As the Head of the Uchiha Clan,” his father took to the official tone he used at meetings or when he was angry. Itachi’s muscles tensed and he bowed his neck instinctively. “I need you to help solidify the clan’s place in Konoha’s forces. You are to return to your previous occupation and you will not cease to fulfil your duties as the Clan’s heir.”

Itachi’s clenched fists trembled as bowed respectfully before his father. “Of course, father.”

“And,” Fugaku looked up again, “I hope you’re okay.” Fugaku has used his normal voice, yet Itachi could not decipher the meaning behind the words.

Treating it as a threat was a safer course of action, and Itachi bowed again before retreating to the garden, only grabbing his sandwich on the way. He needed some air.

He leaned on an old pear tree, the shadow soothing his nerves along with the sweet smell of ripening fruit.

 _Does he know? Did mother tell him? Shisui?_ Itachi thought, long breaths slowly soothing his nerves.

As a skilled shinobi, Itachi rarely feared people. He would usually refrain from challenging them out of due respect or pure politeness, but would stand for what he believed in.

With his father, however, it was different. Apart from the man being his father, he was his clan’s leader. The sheer power this man held in his hand was enough to behead Itachi at a moment’s notice. The young ANBU knew he wouldn’t even defend himself, there was something about his father that made Itachi unable to disobey. And rules were rules.

There was someone coming from behind with their chakra masked.

The kunai flew before the intruder’s feet touched the ground.

“I see your reflexes are intact,” Morino Ibiki spoke from behind.

Itachi turned around to see the visitor.

“Hn.” Itachi’s eyes scanned the buff, scarred man. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” Ibiki said, tossing the kunai back to Itachi. “I came to let you know that your exams are to be conducted in two weeks. If you want more time, speak to the Hokage.”

“I will be ready, thank you.”

“I left the instructions on your porch. See you around.” And with that, Morino Ibiki disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

For the next few days, Itachi took to the privacy of the Uchiha training grounds to get back to any presentable shape. He went over the given exercises, each painstakingly slow and more straining than he’d like to admit.

The ever-present tugging in his bottom made the young ANBU lose balance and miss his targets. He couldn’t even do a proper pivot not to mention a one-handed handspring. Hell, even basic stretches made him wince in pain. Two weeks suddenly seemed like and awfully short time.

By the end of the first week, however, Itachi was back to acceptable strength and agility. Of course, there was still room for improvement – he couldn’t manage a split or a cartwheel, but he could more or _less_ pull off a backflip and a double-handed handspring. Persistence was key so he kept practicing. The shadows and creases under his eyes kept deepening.

 _It’s the constant training,_ Mikoto thought each time she brought out snacks and water.

 _I need to get back in shape,_ Itachi thought in the night, huddled in his corner. Sleep didn’t come.

The psychological evaluation was the tough part. He knew they would try to provoke him, use torture techniques, and undermine his loyalty. As much was stated in the manual.

Itachi knew they’d also try to get in his head to assess the damages. He stooped low enough to ask his mother, in confidence, to help him practice.

Thus, his second week was mostly spent on reviewing all manuals ever written and working on steeling his mind. There was no way he would let the proctor in, and he suspected they would try, even if not for the test, then out of pure curiosity.

* * *

Shisui didn’t know what has gotten into him. How could he run like that from Mikoto? Why was he standing on his parents’ doorstep? The latter hasn’t happened for what felt like an eternity.

He raised his fist to knock when sounds of an argument came through the door. Shisui immediately concealed his chakra and hoped no one’s noticed him yet. On silent feet, he moved underneath the windowsill and listened in.

“Fugaku is not gonna like it, you want to commit treason against Konoha, Kagen.”

“He has to see eye to eye. They want to force us out of the village, make us go extinct!”

“What do you think, Tasui?”

Shisui shuddered at the sound of his father’s name.

“I’ll fight with you all-right. I’m sure my son will join, too.”

“That’s the spirit. After that they won’t ever even think to blame releasing the Kyuubi on the Uchiha.”

The three voices went silent after that. Shisui took this as an opportunity to peek inside to see who the two unnamed men were.

His head poked up over the windowsill in complete silence. The warm glow coming from the lamp made him blink as his sharingan spun into life. He focused on the men’s faces and was about to connect them to their jobs.

His foot slipped.

Shisui caught himself on his palms, but the damage was already done.

The crash itself could’ve been mistaken for someone on the street, but the falling flowerpot, the ruffle of the leaves and a lone curse got Shisui to shunshin away with all the speed he could muster.

* * *

Itachi entered the ANBU headquarters with a straight back and eyes directed forward. He _was_ a Captain after all, and as long as his rank hasn’t been revoked, he would act like it.

The usual sensation of seemingly losing coloured vision overcame him a minute after he entered the underground levels of the HQs. Itachi greeted the accompanying dull pressure behind his eyes like an old friend and pushed his feet further.

His footsteps echoed from the grey, well-lit walls of the main corridor. The destination awaited only few turns away: the ANBU training hall.

The first exam was simple. He nailed all his targets, both still and moving. His blind spot covered with a flurry of kunai whenever it was tested.

The second exam, however, was close-quarter combat. Itachi knew he was well-prepared but could only hope the proctors wouldn’t expect him to be back to his previous form.

The first attack came from behind. With the opponent’s kunai only narrowly missing his neck, Itachi caught their wrist and sent them to the ground, their hand twisted behind their back. His scars tugged with movement but there was no time to evaluate.

He heard the second one coming right before he knocked out the first one and just in time to block with his arm guard.

The second one was definitely a she.

He rolled away from her foot. Not that he had any reservations from punching a girl - she was attacking him and she was a ninja.

Itachi ducked and aimed a fist at her throat.

She got away and sent a kunai his way while trying to get behind his back.

The lone kunai dropped to the floor.

Itachi dodged her fists and sent her flying into the wall with a roundhouse kick.

She didn’t get back up.

Opponents #3 and #4 came from behind and underneath, not playing in 1 on 1 anymore.

Itachi rolled underneath a katana and pushed the ache in his backside into the back of his mind.

A fist sent him flying back. Itachi caught himself with a less-than-gracious handspring and scraped his knee on the floor.

And that was only to get back up and sprinting towards his opponents. He wanted to wipe the grins from their masked faces.

Arrogance was not something well-received on the battlefield.

Itachi jumped into the air in a cover of wired kunai. A twist of his wrists changed their trajectory enough to anticipate their dodges and hit their marks nonetheless.

Itachi landed in front of them, both pinned by their clothes to the ground. He scanned his surroundings for anything new only to find his exam proctor entering the hall.

“I’d love to tell you that you’re out of shape, but you only missed your record by sixteen seconds. Well done, Captain.” The proctor spoke. “That’s all from me.”

They bowed at each other and Itachi took the file the man gave him.

It was time to get to the hard part of the exam.

Itachi sat on a metal chair inside one of the interrogation rooms in the T&I building. He’s been here before; he’s done that before. The chair’s armrests felt cold and unwelcoming under his fingertips.

He wasn’t bound to the chair; the whole room was sealed to block chakra use if one didn’t have a special seal. Pure taijutsu was no match for the men working at T&I, and even if someone managed to incapacitate their interrogator, there was no way to get out the door.

The white light overhead came from a lamp that buzzed quietly every now and then. It was unnerving - exactly how it was supposed to be.

Itachi was actually starting to dose off when the door had finally opened with a soft swoosh followed by the latch closing.

Yamanaka Inoichi sat down in front of him with a blank expression, a folder and a notebook on the desk between them.

“This is the last part of your exam,” he started, “if you pass, you will be able to resume your job as ANBU Squad 3 captain.”

“I understand.” Itachi felt his back tense.

“You will respond with only the first word that comes to your mind.”

“Understood.” They’ve changed the test? It was supposed to be questions, not associations.

“Konoha.”

“Home,” Itachi replied in a beat.

Inoichi sighed and wrote something in the notebook.

“Loyalty.”

“Courage.”

Itachi didn’t miss the older man’s raised eyebrow.

“Mission.”

“Target.”

“Strategy.”

“War.” A small bead of sweat formed on his brow and his chest tightened. These were the _proper_ answers, weren’t they?

“Shadow.” Inoichi’s face gave no more clues.

“Shinobi.”

“Child.”

“Soldier.”

They continued for a while, and Itachi could feel him try getting into his head. The words were supposed to create an entrance, shatter the composed image on his face.

“Now, onto some questions…” Inoichi tapped his pen on the notebook. “What is the first rule of the Female Mission Manual?”

“Never underestimate the possible uses of sanitary products.” Itachi quirked an eyebrow at Inoichi but otherwise remained stoic. “I don’t think this question was relevant.”

“No, it’s just my own curiosity,” the older man said. “The guys said they’ve seen you read it.”

“I’ve read all the manuals. I may have a woman on my team or as my charge, I should know what to anticipate,” Itachi deadpanned.

“That’s good.” Inoichi only now moved to open the folder. “Why did you use extensive force against Mukade on your last mission?”

“He was a skilled opponent with terrain advantage. My techniques were not lethal.”

“You were fighting at an abandoned storehouse a mile away from the town, you should’ve tired him out.”

“I couldn’t let him out onto the fields, it would damage the town’s crops and then he could possibly try to take cover among the buildings. I had to either subdue or kill him before he could run away.” Itachi explained.

“Why, do tell.” Inoichi didn’t stop questioning.

“I know how he had hurt and tortured the boys held there, I wouldn’t take the risk of him repeating it to anyone. Any intel is not worth the suffering of so many children.”

“Then why didn’t you use your comrades’ help to subdue Mukade?” Inoichi prodded again, this time not even pretending not to try to penetrate Itachi’s mind.

 _Over my dead body,_ Itachi thought, fortifying his memories further. “Kakashi and Shisui were busy escorting the children to safety, Squirrel was managing Tako’s police force. I had limited time to subdue him, my chakra levels were depleted after the torture they put me through.”

“Then you have also broken the fourth Shinobi Rule.”

“No, I have fulfilled the objective of the mission. The woman behind the whole organisation was taken captive by my comrades.” Itachi wanted to get out of there. “I have learned the location and purpose of the kidnappings, rescued all the captives and ensured it wouldn’t happen again.” He was tired, sweaty, and his scars itched under his clothes, he really needed to get something better to wear.

“You will be given your results tomorrow, Uchiha-san.”

“Thank you,” Itachi got up and bowed slightly.

A few hours later, the young shinobi stood in front of his wardrobe. He needed clothes that wouldn’t bother his fresh scars and cover them at the same time.

His loose, long-sleeved shirts wouldn’t do. They moved around too much, irritating and scratching at his skin despite their soft fabric. The only thing that fit his criteria was his ANBU turtleneck, but it also wasn’t exactly what he needed. As a member of the Uchiha, especially the heir, he had to wear the clan’s insignia at all times.

Reluctantly, Itachi pulled the turtleneck over his head. For a second, he contemplated putting one of his short- sleeved shirts over it, but the bright sunshine of the day convinced him otherwise.

“Mother,” Itachi stopped by the kitchen to get his mother’s attention. “I’m going out to buy clothes.”

“Aa, be back before dinner.”

“I will,” he assured watching his mother turn around to give him one of her signature smiles.

Itachi walked the paved street towards the centre of the compound. His steps were inaudible among the chatter and laughter surrounding him. It was a glimpse of normalcy he missed dearly.

Some people stopped to greet him and engage in meaningless small-talk. He really wasn’t in the mood, but couldn’t refuse any of them. Especially after being gone for a month. His father would disapprove if he sent anyone off.

“Ah, yes, I got all tumbled up,” Itachi spoke softly towards a kid currently tugging at his leg. “Remember to be careful when you play and train.”

It felt like an eternity had passed before he had finally reached the market.

He weaved through the usual afternoon crowd sending polite bows and smiles to people he passed, and occasional apologies to those he did bump into. It was nice to be surrounded by his clan, even with the anxiety creeping up his back and making him look back with every turn.

“Good morning Itachi-sama!” the elderly shopkeeper smiled as he entered. She was an older lady with salt-and-pepper hair and wrinkles around her eyes.

Itachi smiled back at her. “Good afternoon, miss.”

The air was filled with the lingering smell of moth remedy and perfume. It was strong, yet not necessarily unpleasant and went well with the atmosphere of the place. A large mirror stood in the centre, right in front of the dressing rooms. Every other inch of the place was covered with various clothing so tightly, you could barely make out the check-out desk and the wooden door behind it. Despite the rather sharp light, the homey place let Itachi off his edge a bit. He did love coming here.

“Did Sasuke already grow out of the last batch of clothes I made?” She asked while looking into her order book.

“No, I was hoping to get something for myself.”

“Is there something wrong with your batch? My daughter sewed them. I’ll give her a talking to if she messed them up.” She curled her fingers into a fist.

“They’re perfectly fine,” Itachi spoke before the woman could get any angrier. “I ran into trouble on my last mission, I just need something to accommodate my injuries.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry for you, Uchiha-sama, you always take all the fighting on yourself.”

“I just want to protect my people,” Itachi said. “Do you have anything similar to what I’m wearing now?”

“Let me see,” she spared him a glance before going to shuffle through the many racks. She hummed something to herself as she browsed, a focused look on her face.

“Aha!” she held up a black turtleneck. “There you are.”

Itachi took the shirt and inspected the seams. They were soft and flexible. The material itself felt like a mixture of fleece and silk, something he’s never seen before.

“I made it years ago, when the Uchiha finally joined ANBU ranks. But a year later the Hokage banned any identifying marks on the clothes. Now they’re just laying around and taking up space.”

“How many do you have in my size?”

Itachi thanked the woman and paid soon after, a hefty bag of turtlenecks in hand.

Just as he left the shop, he noticed the sky going darker. He had to hurry up before mother got angry. He wanted to start walking when he felt Shisui’s familiar chakra humming nearby.

Itachi turned in that direction, but Shisui was already gone.

There was no time to go after him, dinner awaited. With the bag jumping slightly at his hurried steps he went home as quickly as he could.

* * *

The first time Shisui saw Itachi was four weeks after they have returned from Tako. It was merely a snippet as the boy ran through the rooftops towards the Hokage tower.

The second time was later the same day, in the compound’s marketplace. Itachi was shopping for clothing. Shisui didn’t know what to say so he left before he was noticed.

The third time was almost a month later when he was summoned to the Hokage’s office. Itachi stood there, his ANBU uniform covering him from head to toe. His hair was tied into a tight bun at the nape of his neck. His toes were the only part of exposed skin.

Shisui didn’t miss the Hokage’s pained eyes set upon Itachi. Minato had a lot to answer for in Shisui’s eyes, and here he was summoning the Uchiha heir for yet another mission.

“Why are we here, Minato-sama?” Shisui broke the tense silence.

“I have a mission for you two.”

“What is it?” Shisui demanded.

“Intel in Kiri. Routine assessment.”

“Why are you sending us instead of some chuunin team?”

Itachi turned to shush him, “Shisui!”

“There are rumours of a coup taking place. I want you to confirm them and notify me of the outcome.”

“Should we intervene?” Itachi asked.

“The old Kage’s family should be protected, do not meddle with the power structure, though.”

“So, you want us to find out who’s overthrowing the Kage, protect the current’s family and what, escort them to Konoha for political asylum?”

“Yes, everything is in the mission scrolls. You leave immediately, Squirrel will join you on the way.”

“Expected duration, Hokage-sama?” Itachi still stood with his back almost plastered to the wall.

“Up to a month.” Minato said.

“Understood.”

“Shisui, stay for another minute.”

Itachi disappeared with a curt bow.

“What?”

“Watch out for him.”

“Of course, but why?” A cold sensation travelled under Shisui’s skin.

“Because his father needs him useful to the clan.”

The Hokage stood seemingly alone in his office under the watchful eyes of a shinobi concealed so perfectly the Hokage took his chakra flashes for one of the ANBU guarding the tower.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of you may have noticed the long comments, which were quite harsh, but in the end I am grateful for any input you all may have on my writing and its not gonna make me quit. So yeah, I'm determined to finish this fic and then rewrite it to make it better.


	6. Being Useful

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm back from the dead, I guess. I hope at least.
> 
> New mission and the intrigues continue unfolding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To anyone who doesnt want to re-read the whole thing:  
> Squirrel is an ANBU shinobi who accompanied Itachi and Shisui to Tako, but didnt play a leading role in the whole endeavour.  
> Hog is another ANBU who deserted during said mission in Tako

Something felt wrong about Minato’s directions. He didn’t give them any substantial information, or tell them why they were both to set out with Squirrel even though Shisui wasn’t even ANBU and Itachi has just got his clearances back. Last time they went in this squad the mission didn’t go smoothly. Both had their brows furrowed.

Itachi looked up to his now-teammate’s face and nodded.

As they ran, Itachi focused on keeping up with his comrade. Throwing his legs forward made the scarred skin itch and tug with every step, as if begging him to stop or at least slow down. That was out of the question, Itachi knew, as he followed Shisui’s silhouette through the woods.

The closer they were the harsher was the terrain. Reaching the top of the valley was harder than the young ANBU remembered. It’s been a long time since they went there.

They stopped at their spot overlooking the Village, right atop the Hokage monument.

Itachi grit his teeth. His legs ached and his heart wanted to jump out of his chest. He composed himself with a deep, even breath, willing his muscles to keep him upright.

A familiar chakra signature neared them from the direction of Konoha. Squirrel jumped down from the trees with an exasperated sigh.

“Why do I always receive the summons late?”

She looked as if she had just returned from another mission and didn’t even have time to shower. Her hair was in a shaggy bun atop her head, her mask was too loosely fastened and hung crookedly on her face. Itachi and Shisui exchanged glances.

“Good to see you,” Shisui greeted, “let’s get over the scroll here so you can get yourself together.”

“I’m alright, we can go,” she huffed.

“Your mask is falling off, Squirrel,” Itachi remarked, his official tone in place.

Itachi poked his chakra towards her, looking for any anomalies and noticed Shisui doing the same.

“I’m just as unhappy and suspicious about it as you are.” She sat down on the grass and took her mask off, showing a bruised face.

“What happened?” Itachi asked.

“I was on patrol in the outer perimeter, I’ve been attacked.”

Itachi’s gaze pushed her to explain further.

“They looked like ANBU, but their cloaks were black. I’ve left the bodies at T&I. They aimed to kill, but as soon as I left them there Ibiki told me to catch up to you two, so I had no time to investigate.” She was currently brushing her hair down with rough strokes of a comb which made Itachi’s insides churn all the more. Not only the information was unsettling, she was going to rip her hair out like that. His eyes kept boring into her movements and he spaced out enough to almost miss Shisui’s voice.

“Were you alone?” Shisui asked. “On the patrol?”

“No, they killed Ouzo.” Squirrel sounded irritated.

Cogs were turning inside Shisui’s head, but he didn’t like what he was coming up with. There would also be a better time to dwell on it than the middle of an unrelated mission.

Itachi had broken himself out of the trance Squirrel’s haphazard brushing put him in. He reached for his scroll.

“It says here that we have rooms reserved under the name ‘Miwaki’ in a hostel called ‘Sunhouse’,” he stated.

“When should we get there?” Squirrel got up and adjusted her mask.

“In 6 days,” Itachi looked over the horizon, calculating their rest stops and route. “We won’t have time to stop for a full night, but we’ll rest on the ship.”

“Let’s get going, then,” Shisui sighed. He adjusted his backpack and fastened the additional strap to keep it from moving around.

Itachi followed Shisui’s movements and lowered his mask onto his face. All three disappeared into the forest.

* * *

The Hokage stood seemingly alone in his office under the watchful eyes of a shinobi concealed perfectly in the shadows. Unnoticed. That was true only to an extent: Minato was more or less aware his actions lately weren’t fully approved by the Elders’ Council and so, they’d put him under some sort of surveillance. The Hokage knew the office was no longer safe, but he hoped he didn’t let that on.

The hidden shinobi withdrew into the deeper shadows before disappearing completely from the Hokage’s office. He had news for his master.

The figure walked through the underground hallways of the deepest part of the ANBU headquarters. Most didn’t know this part of the place even existed. His footsteps lead towards an ornate door at the end of the corridor, two large lanterns on either side.

The shinobi went in and immediately kneeled before a man sitting on the wooden throne. The man wore a dark robe over a white shirt and his right eye had been bandaged. The man was none other than Shimura Danzo, the leader of Root and the most influential council member in Konoha.

“What is the purpose of their mission?” Danzo’s voice echoed through the barren, stone walls.

“Observation of power structure change in the Village Hidden in Mist.”

“What’s the squad Minato sent?”

“The two Uchiha and another ANBU, Squirrel I believe,” the shinobi replied, still kneeling.

“Good, good…” Danzo stroked his scarred chin. “Dismissed.”

Once the Root member was gone, he motioned for another two in the ceiling’s shadows. They came down with a swoosh and assumed the respectful, kneeling position engraved into them since their youngest years.

“Squirrel is on patrol in the outer perimeter, kill her. One of you will join the two Uchiha. Make sure to leave no witnesses, word can’t get to the Hokage.” Danzo adjusted his robe and reached for his cane. “Dismissed.”

Danzo then left the Root HQs and found himself at the Hokage tower in the company of two other council members, namely Homura and Koharu. They were mostly loyal to him, their views on the clans and politics aligned more with his own than with the third or fourth Hokage’s. It was a good thing to have them on his side. The two would back up most of his suggestions and decisions even if he didn’t consult them before relying the ideas to the Hokage.

The chairs were worn out with the long hours the council had planned and debated Konoha’s affairs, and the table bore marks of violent thrusts, punches along heat stains from the copious amounts of coffee and tea spilled onto the surface.

“The Uchiha prodigy should have been removed from the forces,” Danzo stated after they finished discussing the budget for the New Year’s celebration that was only a few months away.

“He passed the tests, and I know you made sure to have the proctors go hard on him,” Homura countered. “His skills are an asset to the village.”

“He’s too observant for his own good, he may figure out that we’re not happy with Minato’s ruling.”

“We could use him, though,” Koharu chirped in. She was met with two curious stares, but decided to sip her tea before elaborating. “His loyalty is to the Village, not necessarily to the Hokage. We could get him to see things our way.”

“At his age he should still be very impressionable,” Homura thought aloud.

Danzo eyed his comrades, measuring the idea in his mind. It wasn’t necessarily bad, however it posed further problems under the name of Uchiha Shisui. The other Uchiha wasn’t nearly as loyal to the Village as he was to his clan or personally to the Hokage, and Itachi was loyal to him.

“I don’t see what he could do that my Root can’t,” he stated despite the cogs and wires visibly buzzing in his mind. “Although, Uchiha Shisui is, in my opinion, a better target. We get him, we’ll get Itachi, too.”

“How do you plan on that without loosening the restrictions on the Uchiha Clan?” Homura put his tea down and folded his hands. Danzo sat back in his chair comfortably, thinking of a sufficient answer.

Koharu watched the two men closely, she didn’t hate the aforementioned clan like them, though she wouldn’t mind them gone from Konoha, if only to stop the two men from focusing on them instead of actual political matters.

“By tightening them,” Danzo said as if it was obvious.

“And how exactly will this push these two towards us?” Koharu asked.

“To stop the coup d’état the Uchiha are planning.”

Danzo smiled seeing his companions’ shocked faces. In the deep silence that fell the sound of a heartbeat was almost thundering. The old man reclined further in his chair, waiting for the initial shock to pass.

“I mean, if they succeeded, it wouldn’t be so bad.” Homura was the first to come to his senses.

“Pushing the restrictions will hasten them,” Koharu noticed. “Planning a coup could still take them years, though.”

“And will require Shisui to seek help and guidance outside the clan,” Danzo added, happy with the outcome of this meeting. “We’re not in a hurry, and acting impulsively on such matters could only hurt our cause.”

“And you’ll convince him to use Kotoamatsukami on his clansmen?” Koharu asked.

“No, I’ll take his Sharingan and implant it into someone reliable,” Danzo scoffed. “I just need him to lower his guard. Then we let the Uchiha kill Minato, eradicate the entire clan after that. Then, no one will question calling me the fifth Hokage.”

* * *

The night had already long enveloped the whole forest in deep shadows when Itachi signalled for the rest of the team to stop. They jumped down to the ground with a soft thump.

“We’ll stay the night here, we are almost halfway to the seashore,” Itachi explained.

“I’ll set the fire,” Shisui said while tossing his backpack under a tree. He turned around to gather some firewood.

“Thanks,” Squirrel said, unpacking her bedroll. She didn’t pretend to be able to continue their journey at the almost breakneck speed that Itachi and Shisui set.

The young captain took out his own bedroll and set it down before reaching for Shisui’s. It was rumpled and not at all perfectly folded like Itachi’s. Basically, it was shoved haphazardly into the material tube designed to keep it from unfolding in the backpack. Itachi snickered at the sight but unfolded and set it out nonetheless.

“Do you wanna eat?” the youth’s face turned towards Squirrel who had already managed to cover herself in blankets.

“Too tired,” she murmured, “I’ll eat in the morning.”

He turned to Shisui, then. The older shinobi was just lighting up the fire with a small fireball. The flames cast an orange glaze onto his face and the wood cracked from the sudden heat. Shisui’s eyes flickered red as the light reached them, and Itachi wondered if his did, too.

Itachi straightened his spine to ward of the sleepiness and reached into his backpack for the mission scroll and a ration pack. He tossed it for Shisui to prepare as he read through the scroll more carefully this time.

“I think we should all sleep tonight,” he stated. “We’re in our territory so the risk is low, and we need to reach the shore before the latest ship leaves for Kiri.”

“We could also sleep at the shore and then just go over through the Land of Whirlpools and catch a ship from there,” Shisui suggested, stirring the just-add-water soup he was making over the fire.

“Running over water is just wasting chakra, Shisui.” Itachi sent him a glare. “And we need to be on guard once we leave Fire. If we take the ship from our border then the risk we’ll get attacked is lower, and we are more likely to have backup at the ready.”

Shisui hummed in agreement. “Here,” he passed Itachi a metal cup full of steaming soup.

“Thanks.”

They ate in silence, only surrounded by the noises of woodland critters and the quiet rustling of slowly reddening leaves. Even though winter was steadily coming the nights weren’t too cold yet, and the crispy air was perfect for soothing turmoiled thoughts.

Itachi eyed through the scroll once again, making sure he had it memorised. Shisui looked him over a few times, but apart from noticing, Itachi paid it no mind. The older Uchiha had moved on to watching Squirrel’s sleeping form.

Itachi got up and swirled through an unmistakable series of seals. To anyone but the two of them the subtle gust of energy radiating from Itachi would be unnoticeable, and even Shisui didn’t resist turning on his sharingan to watch the young prodigy’s genjutsu in action.

The jutsu covered the area around them with a barrier that blocked anyone from seeing and hearing through, yet allowed both of them so see and hear everything. It showed as the tiniest ruffle of light in the corner of one’s view but stilled the moment of being deliberately looked at. Another perk of this particular masterpiece was that should anyone come across them, they would slightly change their way to avoid the half-sphere of genjutsu. It was a slight change, something that someone travelling wouldn’t notice unless they searched for this particular place and focused on finding it.

Shisui sighed approvingly, letting his eyes fade to their usual black.

“G’night, Tachi,” he murmured crawling into his bedroll.

“Good night.”

The boys woke up to the first rays of sunshine shining through the trees and Squirrel munching on a pack of oatmeal, forgoing the water. They shared an incredulous look but went on dressing themselves up and packing their things back into their backpacks.

The morning brought on a slight chill, their breaths condensing briefly in the air with each heavier exhale.

Itachi took down the genjutsu as Shisui and Squirrel hid any traces of their campsite. They were on their way before the sun had fully emerged from the horizon.

There was a small fishing village in front of them, as they reached the seashore. It was almost nightfall, and their tired footsteps were soft on the mossy pavement. The seaport and the quay were the biggest structures in the village, built solely to cater to trade and tourism. A silhouette of a steam ship swayed in the water at the end of the quay.

They made their way towards the port in their full gear which earned them odd stares from civilians and a few polite nods from other Konoha shinobi stationed there.

“You go buy the tickets, I need to get something,” Shisui announced. He shunshined away without waiting for a reply from his comrades. Squirrel released a displeased sigh.

“Does he always go running off like that?”

“Sometimes,” Itachi said, unmoved by his clanmate’s sudden disappearance.

They reached the ticket office in silence. There were much more people surrounding the seaport’s building than Itachi expected. He gave the building a once-over and noticed that it didn’t simply hold the administration of the port but also doubled as a shopping mall. Thankfully, the crowd centred around other shops and there wasn’t a line to the ticket office.

“Three tickets, please,” Itachi told the clerk.

“Identification,” the old lady spat, clearly tired from today’s shift.

“Official Konoha business.” Itachi placed the travel permit card stamped by the Hokage against the window for the woman to see.

“It will be 900 ryo,” she finally said, preparing the tickets as Itachi reached for the money.

“Thank you, have a nice evening.” Itachi took the tickets and bid the woman goodbye.

Along with Squirrel they made their way through the crowd towards the benches in front of the ship. Itachi kept looking around for Shisui, but the older Uchiha had yet to come.

Squirrel sprawled herself on one of the benches, stretching her legs out as far as they would go and put her arms behind her head. Her blond hair had some streaks falling loosely from her bun in odd places. Itachi wondered if it didn’t bother her or get into her ears, but he didn’t want to overstep and ask.

The ships bosun came down the gangplank to announce that all passengers should start gathering their belongings and that they would be boarding in a quarter. Itachi kept adjusting his armguards in impatience after that.

_Where the hell is Shisui?_

Just as the bosun started calling for people to start boarding the ship, Shisui apparated onto the bench between a dozing-off Squirrel, who let out a surprised yelp, and a vexed Itachi who felt him coming from around the corner and wasn’t phased in the slightest.

“I’m sorry, I had to help a cat off a tree…” Shisui used one of Kakashi’s famous excuses, earning himself an exasperated huff from his comrades. The older Uchiha’s smile didn’t waver at that.

“Let’s go,” Itachi murmured with a hint of laughter in his voice.

It took only a moment to get up onto the main deck, from where the three shinobi were shown to their rooms. Due to the limited space Shisui and Itachi were sharing a room while Squirrel got to bask in the comfort of her private room.

The two boys didn’t mind too much, though, as having grown up together made them comfortable in each other’s presence. The only problem was that the cabins were rather tight, and didn’t allow them to move around without bumping and brushing against the other constantly, not to mention things toppling over with every harsher bounce of the ship.

“Hey, ‘Tachi,” Shisui caught the other’s attention. “I’ve got something for you.”

The older boy reached into his backpack to recover a cardboard box tied up with twine. He handed it to Itachi who took it and began inspecting the box. Deciding the exterior wasn’t noteworthy, the boy snatched the string off with a swift move and took off the lid. His mouth watered at the sight of fresh dango.

“Thank you,” he smiled while already bringing the stick to his mouth.

“I had the shop make a fresh batch for you, I’m sorry for being late.”

“You didn’t have to, and please don’t go off like that again,” Itachi scolded, but didn’t hide the dreamy smile on his face. The boy shoved another mouthful between his lips, feasting on the balls of chewy goodness he so adored.

“Worth seeing you smile.” Shisui wanted to facepalm at his own cheesiness, but Itachi flashed him another smile, a grateful one, and Shisui knew he would become the cheesiest man alive only to have his future clan head smiling like that.

“I’ll let Squirrel know I’m taking the watch tonight.” Shisui got up after a moment of silence. Itachi only nodded, still chewing through the dango. It was a really nice treat.

Treat. _You’ll get a treat if you behave,_ Mukade’s voice thundered in his head.

He swallowed hard, his throat going tighter with every second.

Waves of heat and cold crashed around in his body, stirring up goosebumps, muscles twitching, and setting his chest aflame.

Itachi gasped for air, his lung uncooperative and spasming.

Silent tears brimmed in his eyes as he managed to scramble into the corner of his bunk and bring his knees all the way to his chin.

He fought for a full breath, almost clawing at the coarse sheets.

The door creaked just as Itachi managed to get his breathing under control. He wiped away the tears as Shisui stepped into the room.

“… is she even ANBU?” the older Uchiha ranted. “Fast asleep, on a boat, on foreign waters!”

Shisui shut the door behind himself and plopped down onto his own bunk.

“She didn’t even notice me coming in, and she forgot to even lock her door,” Shisui continued, throwing his hands in the air. He didn’t look at Itachi yet.

The heir heard his comrade lay down with a huff.

“You asleep too?” Shisui turned his face towards Itachi, voice annoyed. “Oh gods,” he was on his knees at Itachi’s bedside in an instant. “Are you alright? What happened?”

“The… the nurses said I could have a few breakdowns, and that it was normal,” Itachi croaked out. He wasn’t sure whether the world or just his vision were swaying and the ships movements sure didn’t help.

Shisui noticed Itachi’s face go green. He hauled him outside just in time for the younger boy to heave and throw up overboard. He supposed Itachi wasn’t too keen on being touched, but the youth was far too unsteady on his feet to be left alone just yet.

The older Uchiha knew a panic attack when he saw one, his heart going out for the little prodigy as he watched his body spasm and convulse under yet another retch.

“I’m here, ‘Tachi, I’m here,” he whispered to the boy.

Shisui lead Itachi back into their cabin once he was sure there would be no more throwing up. He offered an apologetic smile and a word about sea-sickness when they passed a concerned crewmate. He let the boy sit down and only then stopped keeping him upright.

Itachi was completely silent as he settled down onto his bunk and closed his eyes, and Shisui couldn’t blame him. He knew how panic attacks felt: he’s been through them as a boy, when he had to start earning money to support his parents.

Shisui reclined on his bunk with a soft sigh; he stretched his chakra around their and Squirrel’s cabin (she was soundly asleep), and let his other senses rest.

* * *

“What do you mean, she’s gotten away?!” Danzo bellowed through his underground throne room. A young Root ANBU cowered further on his knees, his face almost pressed to the marble floor. “I know I’ve told you not to interfere, but you should’ve known better when she started winning.”

“I’m sorry, Danzo-sama,” the boy all but wailed.

“Recover the bodies, now!”

The elder got up from his throne and strolled around the room. His cane tapped on the marble with every step, the sound echoing off the barren walls.

He turned towards his office with a sigh. If he wanted to gain the two shinobi’s trust, he had to know them better and the official files he had access to weren’t sufficient. He needed their deepest fears, joys, and beliefs. Plain interests and vague character descriptions were the bare minimum that got him nowhere.

Had it been anyone else, he’d dispatch someone to just observe them from afar, but these two were annoyingly perceptive and aware of their surroundings. Even the little bitch managed to overpower his Root. He needed the bodies back before the T&I discovered the seals and started suspecting something.

Danzo sighed again. The Uchiha were a problematic bunch. Their eyes wielded immense power – enough to bend reality itself and mold it to one’s desire, yet their minds were so easily clouded with hatred. It made them into bombs just waiting to go off.

Secondly, they pushed themselves into battle with no mind to the consequences, just showing off their battle prowess. It really wasn’t hatred or prosecution that moved them out of the main forces, just pure common fucking sense. If the loss of a loved one or feeling of immense guilt could trigger the evolution of the sharingan into one of immense power, there was no way it wouldn’t disturb the mind. The Curse of Hatred among the clan wasn’t a myth passed down to teach kids to share their toys, but a very real thing that made these people do monstrous things.

Individuals from the clan, however, were gladly utilized, Shisui and Itachi were the living examples. Shisui even more so, as even with his potent Mangekyo the boy refused to succumb into hatred. However extraordinary individuals were not a reason enough to let the clan roam free.

Danzo set down the files he’d been browsing when a knock sounded on his door.

“Come in,” he called.

The young shinobi from before bowed respectfully in a greeting.

“The bodies have been successfully recovered, they are in the lab, Danzo-sama.”

“Good,” Danzo murmured, getting up. It was time to see what exactly had killed them.

He made their way towards the lab, the young shinobi trailing just behind. The door opened with a little squeak, revealing the room with crisp white walls and air reeking of disinfectant. Danzo scrunched his nose at the smell but didn’t say anything. Instead, he made his way towards the first stretcher.

The body was of a teenage girl, her auburn hair matted with blood. But apart from colour, it wasn’t the most interesting thing. Her face was frozen in an expression of pain, her eyes and ears bleeding. Danzo had seen such a thing only once before, when Orochimaru experimented with manipulating sound. His fists clenched.


	7. Being Useless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uhh, alright, i'm sorry that I'm posting so irregularly. I'm really trying but college is getting under my skin. I'm so tired that I need to remind myself to brush my teeth after finishing all the homework instead of just collapsing onto the bed.
> 
> The chapter is mostly filler, I needed some character development and a little reveal to push the story further, because we are about to go through a few-year timeskip.
> 
> Anyway, I love you all for reading and bearing with me.
> 
> Enjoy!

Squirrel woke up when the rays of sunshine coming through the small window of her cabin became unbearable. The coarse sheets scratched at her skin as she stretched. She noticed Shisui’s chakra poking around and smiled. The guy seemed to be ever vigilant.

She got up and dressed before poking her head into the corridor. With her mask in place, she stepped out to knock on the boys’ door.

The door opened before she could raise her fist.

“Morning, sleepyhead,” Shisui greeted in a groggy voice. He had slight circles under his eyes which ensured her of the fact that he indeed kept watch for the whole night.

“Morning,” she replied. “How’s Weasel?”

“Still asleep.”

“I guess the speed you two set has caught up to him,” Squirrel smiled.

Shisui shared the smile, but knew Itachi still wasn’t back to his usual stamina. Normally, the young boy would be up and about before the both of them. But these times it seemed that nothing was as it used to be.

“I’ll wake him up, you could bring us some breakfast down here. We can’t risk your faces being seen.”

Squirrel nodded and disappeared down the hallway.

Shisui glanced back at Itachi’s sleeping form, he looked even younger when he slept. He replaced the fond smile with a more focused expression as he contemplated the best way of waking Itachi up without him spiralling into another panic attack. Shaking him awake (what he’d usually do given the rare chance) wasn’t even in the picture.

The bed dented under Shisui’s elbow as he bent down towards Itachi

“’Tachi, wake up,” he whispered and watched the younger furrow his eyebrows.

“Wake up, Weasel.” He hoped using the codename may bring better results, and lo and behold, Itachi’s eyes snapped open in a slight panic. Shisui moved away just in time to avoid the younger boy’s form lurching up.

“Morning, you sleep well?”

“Yeah, better than in a long time, actually,” Itachi said with hint of an earnest smile.

That left Itachi to wonder why had he slept so well, especially considering the panic attack that put him out, as he worked his way through fastening his ANBU uniform in place. The sun seemed to be already quite high up in the sky, at least from what he could tell through the small window.

His hair was already growing back to the length from before the mission in Tako. He’d have to cut it when they returned to Konoha. Keeping it long was a disadvantage, someone could grab it and pin him down… again.

A knock on the door had Itachi grabbing for a kunai.

Shisui opened the door and let Squirrel in, and Itachi relaxed a bit. His mind was racing yet again, and putting a bit of conscious effort into watching his surroundings helped stop the stampede of thoughts -- even if it left him tense.

Squirrel brought in a tray of breakfast: some rice, miso, grilled fish and tamagoyaki. Itachi hoped for something to soothe his sweet tooth but to no avail.

They sat down on the floor with the tray in the middle and began eating. Shisui ate as if he was famished, Itachi noticed with a smile, the guy had no manners when he didn’t deem them necessary. The soy sauce dripping from the corner of his mouth enough of a testimony. Squirrel ate efficiently and mechanically, cleanly, which was a stark contrast to Shisui’s rice-covered cheeks.

“Actually,” Squirrel broke the silence. “I saw four other Konoha ANBU in the canteen.”

“That’s weird, we weren’t informed we may encounter another team past the port.” Itachi furrowed his brows. “What did they look like?”

“Like us, masks and all,” Squirrel whirled her chopsticks in the air, “they didn’t have the typical armour from what I saw, but we’re on a domestic boat so...”

Shisui looked up from his bowl and shrugged, then reached for another piece of tamagoyaki.

“We should keep an eye out,” Itachi concluded.

They finished eating in silence. Right after, Squirrel excused herself from their room. Shisui and Itachi were left alone.

“I think it’s weird,” Shisui broke the quiet.

“What do you mean?”

“Isn’t it a habit to put your armour on?”

“It should be,” Itachi looked down on his own apparel. “It is for me and anyone I know, especially outside Konoha.”

Shisui hummed in thought before getting up and collecting the tray.

“Come on, let’s go get some fresh air.”

Itachi nodded and began gathering his belongings. He also pulled his hair back into a tight bun before letting the porcelain mask cover his face.

The sun was bright, it was just past midday and the salty breeze tugged at their clothes. Shisui leaned on the railing to watch the calm waves crash against the ship’s side.

Itachi watched the wind tug at Shisui’s curls and wished he could let his hair loose like that, but it would get all tangled and a pain to brush out. The stray strand that had escaped the bun tickled his ear.

They rested in the light for quite some time, without anything better to do. The idle waiting had them both restless and they couldn’t even train without either damaging the ship or draining their chakra reserves if they wanted to work on genjutsu.

Itachi sighed for what felt like the hundredth time.

“Me too,” Shisui sat down beside him with a slight smile.

“We could train but the other ANBU may be a threat, so we shouldn’t use chakra.” Itachi voices his thoughts.

“I have cards in the room,” Shisui proposed, we could invite Squirrel and play something.”

“Cards?” Itachi has the bewilderment deep into his voice.

“Yeah, you can play, can’t you?”

“Uhh…”

“Really?”

“I have no luck.” Itachi defended. He did know all the rules, obviously, to at least five different games.

“You know what they say,” Shisui wiggled his elbow towards him, “who doesn’t have luck in cards has luck in love...!”

“I don’t see how that could be connected, Shisui.”

“You’re such a mood killer, y’know?”

“Hey, guys.” squirrels voice interrupted their teasing. She sat down beside them on the bench, close enough to make Itachi flinch.

“What’s up?” Shisui greeted.

“We might be having a situation.” Her tone dropped down to a whisper.

“These four men you were talking about, they are now dressed as Kiri ANBU.” Itachi spoke, making Shisui feel inadequate. This level of observance was beyond him.

“How do you know?” Shisui prodded.

“They passed us on our way up, and I don’t remember any Kiri ANBU boarding. Squirrel just proved my suspicion.”

“Same footsteps,” she explained. The two knew not to challenge her judgement. Though Shisui didn’t withhold the suspicious stare.

“I’m not just a flirt, Shi,” she barked, “I am ANBU for a reason.”

Itachi just shook his head.

“We are disembarking tomorrow evening, let’s hope they wait till then to make their move or disregard us completely. We have a mission, and fighting on the boat may endanger civilians.” His voice was barely audible as he stood up.

“I’ll fetch us some dinner and let’s meet in the cabin,” Itachi spoke, his voice back to normal.

“Sure, I’m pretty tired, too.” Shisui stood up and stretched. The game was on.

The next day was uneventful, it didn’t seem that the other team had noticed someone was onto them. As established by common courtesy they nodded at each other in respect when passing in a corridor or entering the same space.

Itachi hoped for them to be actual Konoha ninja on some other infiltration mission they weren’t told about. It would make everything so much easier.

But dreams have a tendency to be just that - dreams. Itachi noticed the blink of the senbon before it lodged itself in Shisui’s neck. He caught it centimetres away from his teammate’s skin.

They were already in the outskirts of the port town, heading towards the capital.

“Show yourselves!” Squirrel called out dropping from the trees and landing on the ground in her fighting stance. Itachi and Shisui followed suit, backs turned to each other in mutual defence.

More senbon flew from the trees, four chakra signatures darting around them in circles, too fast to exactly pinpoint, too slow to be unaware of general location.

“If you step away now, we won’t pursue.” Itachi’s authoritative voice cut through the forest.

There was a slight pause in their moves. Enough. Shisui flickered away.

Back-to-back with squirrel, Itachi moved around in a circle, careful not to step too far away, lest he step out of the safe-zone of her techniques.

Two bodies dropped from the trees and Shisui reappeared in formation. A smirk on his face that had one’s blood running cold.

That was incentive enough to have the two others step into view. Their footsteps cautious yet predatory.

“Surrender, you will be arrested for attacking Konoha shinobi on allied ground and brought in for interrogation and trial.” Itachi stepped forward, his palm resting on the handle of his tantō.

The two men snickered and surged forward. Itachi glanced at Squirrel and nodded.

They fell down with blood bursting out of their ears, their terrified screams echoing through the trees. Itachi strolled towards them.

“What are your orders?”

With a swift move of his tantō, their masks were gone, revealing faces not much older than Squirrel’s or Shisui’s. Their eyes were defiant and mouths snarling like rabid dogs. Itachi wondered if they could get any intel out of them.

“What are your orders?” Shisui repeated the question, moving to stand on Itachi’s right, half a step behind.

“What are you, his mutt?” the ninja on the right spat. Shisui left it without answer.

“Please, cooperate,” Itachi spoke with gravel in his voice. “You’re only making this harder on yourselves.”

“Just kill us and be done with it,” the same ninja tried.

“Uh-uh, not gonna happen, what are your orders?”

“To kill you, obviously.” The one on the left joined the conversation.

“Why?” Itachi questioned.

“Because we got an order.”

“That’s not an answer,” Shisui sighed, his kunai already out.

“Shisui, they won’t spill and we shouldn’t get dirty.” Itachi reprimanded. “There are other ways.”

Shisui’s eyes spun red and black, the deadly crimson bringing the two ninja into a world of nightmares.

Itachi turned away to see Squirrel dragging the two other bodies towards them, a grim expression gracing her features. He went over to help as the two still alive men writhed under Shisui’s genjutsu.

It may have been a barely minute, but the men did not make it out alive. Once Shisui was done, their bodies collapsed like rag dolls.

He met Itachi’s questioning stare.

“They came from Konoha after us,” he stated, “claimed to be ANBU. Had weird seals on their tongues, though.”

Itachi nodded.

They burned the bodies under the cover of Shisui’s genjutsu, but only after inspecting them and sealing away any evidence they could find. Itachi and Shisui made sure to memorise their faces, should they need a sketch.

The shadows seem to creep around them, more unknowns surrounding them, clouding their minds. The branches creaked under their feet, the rustle of leaves and a slight swoosh the only fleeting evidence of their presence. Dark had enveloped everything in its grey and blue hues, moonlight scarce through the canopy.

Soon, at their speed at least, the temperature dropped even further, trees giving way to rocky, mountainous terrain. Their shoes sank ankle deep in muddy snow unless they used chakra to keep themselves up. Their speed suffered in foreign land; surrounding darkness and cold mist didn’t help with navigation.

Itachi’s ears turned red from the wet cold and his scars tugged with every move. Squirrel had covered her whole head and neck with a shawl and Itachi wished his hair was long enough to use as a scarf. He stopped the thought and trudged further through the mud. They were close, the glow from the Village visible from the behind the nearest hill.

Taking the road would’ve been easier, but with the weird encounter with enemy ninja made them play it safe, deciding to reach Kiri from south instead of east. It added some distance but better tired than dead. With each step the mist was getting denser, signalling they were nearing the Village Hidden in the Mist.

Air smelled of cold and fresh black powder. Itachi wanted to sneeze. The more they walked into the village, the more poverty and unrest they saw, perhaps the coup the residents were planning was long overdue. Squirrel motioned towards an alleyway, and they all disappeared into the deep shadow.

“It looks horrible, we had no intel telling us the village was in such shape.” She spoke.

“Maybe that’s why the Hokage told us not to interfere with it,” Shisui rested his back on the wall.

“But why should we protect the Kage’s family?” Itachi took out the mission scroll, he made a step forward only to take his foot out of what could only be a puddle of thickening blood.

He unrolled the parchment, fingers numb and protesting, and looked through for some hidden information. He’d already memorised the contents completely, no new code had presented itself upon arrival.

Nothing, nothing more than what they already knew.

Their breaths were turning white in the cold air. They all needed to rest.

The hostel looked alright, not supplying anything but the bare necessities and clean beds. Shisui was asleep before he hit the bed - it was Itachi’s turn to keep guard.

It wouldn’t be a problem, Itachi knew. He sat down on his bed, legs crossed and his palms resting on his knees. He meditated, chakra seeping into the walls of both rooms in thin, carefully woven threads.

Itachi let his body slump slightly in the position, his mind drifting away into a calming mantra. It wasn’t quite sleep, but it let the body rest. All of the stimuli would reach him, but if they weren’t strong or worrying, they wouldn’t trouble his consciousness. And so, he could hear the whistling of the wind outside the window, the snow crashing into the glass and the creaking of the stairs at the end of the corridor. Squirrel was asleep, but her chakra kept tapping into his, checking for changes every once in a while.

Shisui on the other hand had taped a sliver of his chakra into Itachi’s web. The constant connection was delicate and almost assuring, especially with Shisui’s body sprawled out on the bed and his relaxed breathing.

The night went by slowly and uneventfully, the morning showing just how poor the village had gotten. The freezing mud covering the streets slushed under wheels and feet and children ran around, forming mud balls in ragged clothes.

Itachi cleared his throat, the rest of his consciousness coming back from the meditation. He stretched, skin still tight and itchy. He looked around the room is a slight dismay; it really didn’t offer any luxury.

He noticed Squirrel wake up and leave the room, her chakra pulsating to let him know.

He cleared his throat again, louder this time. Shisui grunted and squeezed his eyes, palms rubbing the sleep out. Itachi entered the bathroom knowing the man wouldn’t sleep through a break-in.

The bath was even more disappointing than the room, without even a proper shower. Itachi undressed, his eyes darting away from the mirror and let warm water wash away the sweat and blood and grime from his skin. Drying and dressing up went quickly even with his body protesting the hasty movements.

Shisui was awake when he left the bathroom. He was just making his bed and fishing clean clothes from his bag.

“Morning,” Shisui greeted.

“Morning, get ready, we need to figure out what’s going on here.”

Shisui disappeared into the bathroom with the hinges slightly protesting. The sound of running water soon came from the door.

Squirrel knocked on their door sometime later, when both Uchihas were sitting on their beds in comfortable silence. A tray of steaming dishes in her hands.

“Why am I always the one getting food?” She asked playfully. She went in without further invitation and set the food down.

“Thanks, I’ll get us dinner later,” Itachi offered. Squirrel smiled, shoving a spoon of rice-y goo into her mouth. It smelled alright, so he followed suit, as Shisui shovelled down fried fish.

The goo had a sweet tinge to it, maybe some carrots? Itachi contemplated the taste with every spoonful. He topped the dish with what looked to be the Kiri variation of tamagoyaki.

Around midday, they roamed the Village. The cold seeped in through their boots and cloaks, with the aura of violence and unease set in the air. They’ve sauntered towards the centre, better-off but less lively. The people seemed tense.

Itachi grit his teeth. There was literally nothing to see except poverty and grime. His hands were red and numb and his ears burned from the cold. Hooded cloaks were nice but only if you could put on the hood. Travelling through the Village called for unobstructed vision, and so the hoods rested on their back as their ears froze and noses ran.

“Guys, you do know that the Mizukage is a child, right?” Squirrel broke their silence.

“Yeah, and not in the right mind,” Shisui muttered.

 _We’re useless here. Minato could’ve literally sent a Chuunin team here,_ Itachi thought. _There is a riot brewing, but a coup is unlikely. Either he wanted us three out of Konoha or there is something else that we’re not noticing._

“This mission is a farce!” Squirrel sighed once they returned to the hostel. “It’s pointless to protect the Mizukage’s family if they’re all dead.”

Itachi furrowed his brows at that. Maybe this mission did have a point.

“Let’s visit the cemetery tomorrow, and get an audience with the Mizukage.”

“Sure, why though? What are we gonna tell him?” Shisui looked up from the food they bought on the way.

“That we saw fit to let him know of our presence in the Village and we come here to ensure that our ally is in good shape.” Itachi thought out loud. “Kiri shinobi _have_ been spotted in Konoha on similar grounds in the past months, shouldn’t cause problems.”

* * *

“The Mizukage won’t be able to see you today,” the secretary at the Kage’s office told them with a bored tone, “His excellence is busy with important matters and cannot be disturbed.”

“This is alright, we came here because of custom, not need. Please log down that we came.” Shisui spoke.

“Of course, have a pleasant stay at our village.”

“Thank you,” they all bowed politely before turning around and leaving.

They stepped out and Itachi lead them towards the cemetery, maybe they could find something there. It should be deserted at this time of a business day.

But… it wasn’t. The gate to the cemetery was guarded by two ANBU, both dressed in full armour. Their masked faces turned towards them, their bodies morphing into fighting stances.

Shisui raised his hands. “We hoped to pay respects to the previous Kages and their families.”

“The cemetery is closed. Turn away,” one of them spoke.

“Why?” Shisui asked.

“Kage’s orders, turn away,” the same ANBU said.

“Okay, we will do it from behind the fence, would that be alright?” Shisui asked to the puzzlement of the guards.

“I guess…?” the other man turned to the first who seemed to be his superior.

“The Kage doesn’t want anyone near the cemetery grounds. Please come on your next visit.”

“Alright, we’ll go,” Squirrel spoke. “Take care.”

They parted with a polite nod and the three Fire shinobi went to explore the rest of the village. The Hokage wanted them there for up to a month, so something should happen during this time. The question was, what.

Shisui eyed Itachi carefully as they roamed the streets, he would often stare towards the direction of the cemetery. He would also count something on his fingers, then curl them into a fist before shaking it off. They wouldn’t get much sleep that night.

Squirrel broke away to look through the library. She changed her clothes in an alleyway into some nice civilian clothes she bought and took off her blond wig to reveal dark, greyish-purple hair which she pulled into a haphazard ponytail. The two boys stared in shock, but didn’t comment.

* * *

In the dead of the night, Itachi left the room. He jumped across the rooftops towards the cemetery hoping to find some answers. It seemed odd, the Hokage’s directions.

His feet tapped down in front of the Kage mausoleum. The large stone structure was covered in moss and vines, obscuring its shape.

Unkempt, he thought.

The seal on the door had been broken a long time ago, it seemed, but the hinges didn’t squeak when he pushed the door. It was dark inside and Itachi cursed himself for not bringing a flashlight. Sharingan spun into life.

In the darkness only penetrated by his sharingan Itachi moved forward, passing empty shelves and dusty stone plates. The whole place looked empty, unfitting for a village so violent.

Familiar chakra came from behind him.

“Thought I’d let you go alone?”

“Suspected you’d tag along,” Itachi greeted.

Shisui clicked his flashlight on. The beam cut through the darkness, showing dust and cobwebs covering the shelves, making them both want to sneeze from the sight.

In the back of the room, there were stairs leading down. Shisui wanted to move but Itachi caught his wrist.

“Turn it off, there may be someone down there.”

The light died and they descended into the basement, only their sharingan helping them navigate.

The room was empty, no chakra signatures nearby, no other exits. The flashlight flickered back on.

In the middle, there was a table littered with books and papers, along with a bottle of sake.

The walls here however were stacked with coffins. The table could wait.

Itachi went around looking for discernible names, engravings, anything that could point them towards the true cause of their mission. It couldn’t all be a farce.

The room they were in looked much more frequented than the one above, the table in the middle with papers strewn across and the freshly empty bottle of sake suggested someone had spent a long time down here.

Shisui was busy looking through the table with his sharingan ablaze. Maybe he’d find something useful?

Itachi went back to the coffins, some were new, some older, dating back to the first Mizukage. He looked at the newer ones, hoping to find the current Kage’s parents. Lo and behold, in the darkest corner lied two simple, porcelain urns. It wasn’t customary to burn the Kage’s family, usually the bodies were preserved should they be needed for research or out of pure respect.

What were they trying to hide? Itachi wanted to pulse his chakra through the ashes but knew he’d disrupt the dust and give away their intrusion.

“Someone’s coming,” Shisui broke the silence.

Itachi looked towards the stairs but they could already hear the door opening above them.

Shisui grabbed Itachi’s wrist and teleported. They were gone before the person reached the stairs.

They materialised around half a mile away, both panting and their hearts thumping.

Itachi was trembling.

“I’m so sorry,” Shisui let go of the wrist he’d still been holding, “had to get us out...”

“It’s, it’s okay,” Itachi lied. He took a step away, forcing his mind to take control over his shuddering body. “I just didn’t expect it.”

He looked around the alleyway they occupied, trying to figure their next course of action. It was most likely that the person coming down the stairs had felt the chakra outburst. They could be calling a search for the intruder right now.

“We have to move,” he said.

Shisui nodded with worry still tugging at his features.

They came into the hostel with ragged breaths. The warmer air helped soothe their throats and Itachi had only now noticed his fingers were numb and icy. His body felt hot, though, blood pressure probably skyrocketing but not quite warming his hands. He sighed.

“Let’s go to sleep.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo, do you have any ideas who Squirrel is or no?
> 
> Who did they almost find at the cemetery?
> 
> Who sent the ANBU who attacked them after the ferry?
> 
> Thank you for reading!


	8. Man In The Shadows pt. 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Uhhh, hello everyone, I know Ive been gone... again. But I have finals right now and life's been hectic, plus im moving out from my parent's house in like two months so i have an unnatural amount of stress right now which put me into a complete writing block. But I managed to get something presentable written.
> 
> So, this chapter is the beginning of the end of Arc 1, so think about it like a season finale, though I hope there wont be much of a break between the next chapters.
> 
> With new and old forces at work, Itachi and his crew are to be soon faced with an evil that roots deep into the very core of what they've sworn to protect.

The morning was slow, everyone having to unwind form the previous day’s findings. Itachi’s heart kept thumping each time Shisui came near.

They sat in the boys’ room, Squirrel telling them what she’d found at the library about the village’s power structure, their academy being a hot topic on her tongue. The way the authorities forced only the poorest citizens to attend the graduation exam… the exam itself, a fight to the death. It was more gruesome than what the Konoha ANBU went through.

Of course, this only explained the high defection rate and the Hunter branch of the army. But not to reflect on the ‘why’s seemed idiotic.

It wasn’t their place to judge.

“I mean, we can’t blame them for planning a coup. There was a story of a guy who slaughtered the whole academy during the exam.” Squirrel put her fingers through her blond wig. “He defected right after, and it’s not like he even had to attend it! He was from the Hoshigaki clan,” she ranted.

“The Village of the Bloody Mist,” Shisui whispered. “That’s how they get that moniker.”

“Anyway, what did you guys find?” She changed the topic.

“There is someone living inside the Kage mausoleum,” Itachi said.

“Buried alive?”

“No,” Shisui looked at her as if to say ‘ _if they would’ve been buried alive, we’d free them, are you nuts?’_

“A bed, table, notes, and books. Like a hideout,” Itachi explained. Squirrel furrowed her brows, who would want to hide among the dead?

“We don’t know who it is, but it looked like official Village files and plans, the notes covered taxes and road plans,” Shisui followed. “Seems to be either the Mizukage himself or a close advisor.”

“You don’t usually keep advisors in a mausoleum. They live in or close to the Kage tower,” Squirrel said. Her brows almost met in the middle of her forehead, her face so tense that even her nose was scrunched.

“I wouldn’t be able to live in a mausoleum,” Shisui huffed, “all the dead people, and mice.”

“I was thinking the same,” Squirrel admitted.

“Maybe it’s someone presumed dead, or someone who pertains more to the world of the dead than the living.” Itachi thought out loud, earning himself two weird glances. He only shrugged.

“I’m gonna stay here today, I’ll look over our mission scroll and cross-check it against what we’ve found.” Squirrel said after a moment of silence. “I really don’t like how inaccurate our intel was. Maybe there _is some_ hidden message.”

Everyone shook their heads at that, a murmur of ‘ _I don’t know, we’ve looked at it from every direction_ ’ came from the guys, masked behind Shisui’s exasperated groan.

They’ve literally gone through every cipher, allegory or another form of coding they could think of to absolutely no avail. If it was a typical recon mission, they’d return to Konoha to give the Hokage a piece of their minds. But this one was not your typical recon mission, plus they’ve become concerned for the people of this Village because apparently the Kage was not acting in their best interests.

Itachi was livid, the anger was however, perfectly concealed under his emotionless façade. No pulsing veins or fisted hands to give away his distress.

“I hate to propose this, but maybe we should get into the Kage tower.” Shisui’s voice cut through the heavy silence.

“It’ll be a war if we get caught,” Itachi spoke.

Squirrel remained silent, she was tired from all the books and journals she’s browsed through and really wanted a hot bath. This mission was already fucked up, she deserved to cut herself some slack.

“We should at least find out who the hell lives in that mausoleum,” Shisui said.

“Let’s go, then,” Itachi rose from his seat.

They disappeared in puffs of smoke, reappearing a few buildings away. Their steps carried them towards the cemetery, through red and black tiled rooftops and among hanging laundry. The air up there still smelled of smog and homemade gunpowder with a tinge of decay.

With frosty air nipping at their noses and ears they found a good spot overlooking the mausoleum’s entrance. As far as they’ve checked it was the only one and judging by the state of the mausoleum itself the person living there shouldn’t be overly cautious. The stake-out began.

The air was getting colder from the moment they stopped moving. Their chakra concealed into those reminiscent of mice wasn’t flowing properly and that gave the cold some better access to their fingers and toes. Shisui had to consciously stop himself from shivering while Itachi was fighting against the sharp itching in his still fresh scars. Such cold weather was always a nuisance.

Shisui’s eyes started wandering about two hours into the stake-out. There hadn’t been any movement yet, excepts for a mundane guard change, and his eyes refused to stay zoned in on the small, ornate building. His gaze travelled towards the horizon, where the sun neared the treeline, or the road to their left, where merchants weren’t only dealing what their stands offered. By the time the sun hat touched the horizon, and their teeth threatened to start chattering, Shisui had found himself studying Itachi’s focused face.

Of course, the other had sent him a few pointed glances, but Shisui couldn’t help his own curiosity. The boy had change in the last months, for better or worse was yet to be determined. For example, instead of a shoulder-length ponytail was a tight bun wrapped in a piece of black cloth. It was elegant and sleek and probably practical, though it made Itachi look almost feminine. Shisui decided he didn’t like that look at all.

On the other hand, Itachi had taken to wearing turtlenecks instead of the standard wide-collared shirts the Uchiha clan liked to sport. Of that he had to approve, because even though young, Itachi’s body was beautifully toned and had many a girl swooning and fantasizing over being the chosen bride.

What Shisui knew from experience, was also that the typical shirts tended to be irritating on scars, and that made a lump form in his throat. Just how many new scars had Itachi gotten on that god-forsaken mission in Tako?

Another pointed glare pulled Shisui out of his thoughts.

“Look,” Itachi whispered.

Shisui looked towards the mausoleum to find a cloaked and masked man standing with the guards at the gate. All three men looked at ease, though the guards showed the man respect worthy of at least a daimyo. He furrowed his brows and kept trying to read from the body language.

Itachi tensed beside him, an unusual motion for the shinobi. Shisui immediately looked to his friend’s face, searching for answers. The boy put him back on the task with a motion of his hand. This was no time for questions.

Shisui studied the mask covering the man’s face, it was orange with black markings and a hole only for his right eye. He had black hair that went down past his shoulders in unruly spikes. The young shinobi had an odd feeling about the man, and the power emanating from him. The aura was formidable to say the least, one he could only pinpoint to a figure thought long dead.

Itachi seemed to share his concerns, his tense body almost shivering against the rooftiles.

They couldn’t move now, something told them that the moment they moved they’d be spotted and chased.

The man disappeared through the doors of the mausoleum and only then did the two boys release the breath they’d been holding for all too long. Itachi was about to signal for them to leave when a second person crossed the cemetery’s gate. The boy was clad in rather ornate clothing and carried an unmistakable staff. The Mizukage had come to the mausoleum.

If they had any backup, they’d try to infiltrate and hear what the two talked about, but their situation was far from ideal.

They darted towards their hostel under the cover of the night. Only in the confidence of Squirrel’s room did Itachi share his thoughts.

* * *

It would’ve been a beautiful night in Konoha. The stars were bright on the clear sky and the moon hung overhead like a paper lantern gleaming in a hue just between yellow and silver. The breeze was fresh and welcoming, if only slightly chilling where it got underneath loose robes; it certainly soothed the perpetual ache Danzo felt under his bandages.

It really would’ve been a beautiful, peaceful night had three Root members not burst into his office. Both were breathless, their eyes shining with fear that seemed to stem not only from disturbing their master but also something else, something they were yet to reveal.

Kneeling on the floor and catching their breaths they waited for him to let them speak. Danzo waved his hand, permission granted.

“Sir, the squad you’ve sent after the Uchihas had perished.” The one to his right said.

“Did you recover the bodies?”

“No, sir, they had been burned to ash.” The other one spoke.

“Have you seen it? I remember putting out a kill on sight order for these three so I do not understand why are you here without the Uchihas,” Danzo sneered, anger seeping from his body in a deadly aura working to startle the two expert shinobi kneeling on the floor.

“We,” the one on the left gulped. “We didn’t see it happen, and they left no traces we were able to follow. There was a pile of ash and small metal fragments we managed to identify as their armor.”

This explanation was acceptable, Danzo deemed. He sent them off without further conversation. His plan was not going too well so far, but if his intel was correct, they would be gone for an extended period of time anyway.

He paced around his office, the steady tapping of his cane on the stone floor was an ideal metronome for his thoughts.

The Uchiha were… uncomfortable to handle, but their eyes were a power to be reckoned with, a power he wanted for his own. He could make the world a better place, he wasn’t affected by the Curse of Hatred, he had Hashirama’s cells to aid his body and opening the full spectrum of techniques. The eyes however, were expiring. Every use weakened them, some of the ones currently imbedded in his arm were in a desperate need of changing. He had to get his hands on a new pair, and his time was running out slowly but steadily.

The coup must take place.

Annihilating the Uchiha would be an amazing way harvest some of the finest specimen, preserve them in his lab and henceforth achieve his lifetime supply. With that power, he could overthrow the Kages and unite the world. No more wars and turmoil, no corrupted leaders wanting more and more land for their own. He could bring eternal prosperity and build his own Capital City that would gather the finest minds and hands from all over, pushing technology and crafts millennia ahead.

He just had to gain the power and the trust of the people of Konoha. Then, he’d be unstoppable. And what better way was there to gain political power than to save the whole Village and the Hokage from an evil clan driven by power-hungry warmongers like the Uchiha? He would have no choice but to crush them and imprison or execute all those responsible. Afterwards, in his gratitude, the Hokage would step down from the office, offering it to him along with other great honours. Of course, he could not accept such a responsibility so readily. It would take a lot of pleading and pledges of loyalty for him to humbly accept the trust the people of Konoha wanted to bestow upon him.

The first part of his plan could be completed so easily now, if only he could get rid of these two nosy Uchiha pests that had a way of knowing far too much than they should. Or maybe there was another way, one that used them to his advantage?

Itachi was still at an impressionable age, especially with all he’s been through. Hed do anything to save his little brother. But would he do it at the cost of forsaking the rest of his clan?

Shisui felt for Itachi the same way Itachi felt for Sasuke, and therefore made him also a ready target.

With a pulse of chakra, Danzo called two shinobi into his office, their silhouettes instantly materializing at his feet.

All would play along just fine.

* * *

“I know that man, he was the one who attacked the fire daimyo’s convoy my genin team guarded. He killed everyone except me and Yuki-san.”

“What? But what’s he doing here?” Shisui tried to wrap his head around it, but the thing seemed totally unbelievable. “To me, he looks like Madara.”

“Madara’s dead,” Squirrel cut in. “I’ve found something, too. I got bored and hit the library once more. Turns out there was a similar situation a few years back, a guy named Ao figured it out and the man who manipulated the Mizukage left.”

“Could be an impostor,” Shisui said.

Squirrel shook her head. “What do we do now?”

“We should pay Ao a visit, he might know something,” Itachi concluded.

“Ao… Ao… Ao the Byakugan Killer! I’ve met the guy once.” Shisui perked up. “He retreated once he saw me, though.”

This wasn’t very useful, but maybe a known face could coax the man to talk to them once they found him. The rest of the night was spent on planning and trying to predict any possible outcomes. Their possibilities looked grim. They knew backup would arrive within a week at best, and having more troops enter a foreign village could be taken as an act of hostility. The whole point of this mission seemed to be to prevent an unnecessary war.

Itachi couldn’t sleep that night, even Shisui’s soft snores couldn’t lull him. He had a lump somewhere in his chest that kept him awake and his mind racing. He couldn’t decide whether to expose himself to the chilly air of the night or to dive deeper into the covers. He tried tossing and turning a bit, hoping a change in position would let him finally sleep. The moment he managed to close his eyes, though, nightmares flooded his brain. And he couldn’t open his eyes again.

_He was in a spacious room of Tako’s bordello. It was gloomy, just enough light shining from metal lamps mounted on the walls between large bookcases towering above him, reaching almost all the way to the ornate ceiling. The floor was covered by a worn-down carpet, all windows had been covered by heavy, purple drapes that matched the small settee by a fireplace on the other end of the room. He was behind one of the bookcases, crouched in the cover of a deep shadow. To his right, a door opened and a man walked in._

_He couldn’t move, not yet at least, his mission called for surveillance - not apprehending the possible suspect. His feet seemed glued to the floor, too; by a power stronger than anything he’s experienced. He wanted to ask the newcomer what was going on, but he found himself voiceless, and the man hadn’t addressed him either. He remained unseen._

_‘It’s just a dream, there’s no mission’, he tried telling himself, but the same odd power, and a deep conviction that there was a mission indeed, shattered all further cohesive thoughts._

_Before long, just as Itachi managed to calm his breathing, the door opened again. Three people walked in, all bound with ropes and barely able to move. Itachi felt his chest rip open as he realised it were Shisui, his mother, and Sasuke. When he still couldn’t move a muscle, he wanted to scream._

_‘The mission comes first’, a thought – not his own – formed in his mind_.

 _Slowly, the man - whose face Itachi still hadn’t seen - had murmured something before pulling his mother by the hair, exposing her throat. The ragged breath not only audible, but also visible in the spasms of her clenching throat. A knife glinted before his mother fell down choking on her own blood. Sasuke trashed against his binds and all Itachi wanted to do was dart across the room and stop his mother from bleeding to death. But Itachi couldn’t move,_ shouldn’t _move._

_His thoughts scrambled into a pulp of despair as the man neared Shisui, but his body didn’t budge. His best friend had tears streaming freely down his cheeks, face twisted in fear and agony._

_Why isn’t he fighting? Itachi wanted to ask. He knew it was a dream and yet he still helplessly watched Shisui plead for his life._

Something was shaking him awake. The movements were harsh and almost violent, a rough grip placed on his shoulders. Had the man decided to take his life now? Would Sasuke be safe?

Itachi’s eyes snapped open, his body flying up, hand reaching for his kunai.

The offending grip disappeared.

“’Tachi,” came Shisui’s voice. “’Tachi, you’re safe now, it was just a dream.”

His disoriented gaze scanned the room, where was his mother? Sasuke? That man?

“Itachi, hey…” Shisui’s voice sounded again. “No one’s getting hurt, you’re safe.”

He looked around again, his gaze more focused now. His eyes landed on Shisui’s concerned face, black eyes full of compassion. It let him take a deep breath.

“I’m sorry I disturbed your sleep,” Itachi whispered. He let go of the kunai, which Shisui promptly moved back onto the end table. “Thank you.”

“Don’t apologise, every one has nightmares sometimes.” Shisui tried to soothe.

“Aa,” Itachi murmured, swinging his legs down from the bed and resting them on the cold floor. “I’m alright now,” he spoke despite his still raging heartbeat, “I’ll just go wash my face, you can go back to sleep.”

Shisui hated being dismissed like that. “You know you can talk to me…”

“There’s nothing to talk about. It was just a nightmare.”

“I’m still here if you want to talk about it, it sometimes helps to tell someone.”

“We have things to do in the morning, Shisui. I need you well-rested.” Itachi’s voice came out harsh and authoritative, an order, as he shut the bathroom door behind him.

He splashed his face with cold water and rubbed the tearstains away. Shisui shouldn’t have seen him crying. Hell, he wasn’t even aware of the tears until he looked in the mirror. It wasn’t appropriate for him to be seen crying. Neither of his positions would allow that, and his best friend was still his subordinate. He slumped to the floor with his back pressed against the door. There was no going back to sleep, was there…

Itachi went back to bed anyway, sitting on the cold bathroom floor would only irritate his joints and disadvantage him further. He had noticed them aching about a month after he left the hospital, after one of his sleepless nights spent in the corner of his room. Now anytime he’d sit on a cold surface for too long they would ache and make him feel stiff.

 _Sleeping on concrete in a leaking cell for weeks,_ his mind supplied.

Shisui lied on his bed with his eyes closed, but Itachi knew he wasn’t quite asleep.

Morning came rather quickly, and Itachi left the cocoon he’d made from his blanket. Shisui was only beginning to wake when he left the room to fetch them some breakfast.

Down in the dining hall he saw Squirrel already filling her plate, and joined her with a polite greeting. She seemed pleased about not having to bring up a full tray of food another day in a row.

Itachi decided upon a hefty serving of dried fruit glazed with honey to go with his oatmeal, he really needed some sugar. He got Shisui a variety of offered food for him to choose from, knowing the man could never decide what he wanted to eat.

When Itachi and Squirrel entered the boys’ room, Itachi didn’t miss the concerned gaze Shisui sent his way, or the way their hands almost bushed when he passed Shisui his tray.

“I think I’m onto something,” Squirrel started once they sat down. “It’s a really stupid thing and a long shot but…” She waved her chopsticks in the air. “What if the part about the Kage’s family is not about his relatives, but the people in this village? I mean, it makes sense if you look at the level of poverty.”

“But how would we protect them without interfering with the coup? Three people against the Mizukage and the army? I mean I know he sent two Uchiha prodigies and you with your sound manipulation, but Minato must have meant something more… possible.” Shisui argued. “It still stinks, even if we look at it from this angle.”

“Shisui’s right, we won’t stand a chance against their whole army, and even if we tried, it would be an open declaration of war,” Itachi nodded. “It might be getting us closer, though. Maybe you’ll find something more later, but now we should find this Ao.”

“Let me send a crow first, we should let Minato know we’re in a sticky situation.” Shisui got up to get some paper.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to my lovely readers, who write me amazing comments and give me kudos. I would not be able to write anything if it werent for the constant thought in my mind telling me that what im doing is able to bring a little bit of joy to someone out there in the world (sometimes literally the other end of the globe). Im really gratefull for everyone who is willing to bear with me, because we're still in for a bumpy ride. So please, hang on!


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